Gujranwala train accident: 19 martyred, funeral prayers offered
Relief work still underway after the accident, 14 dead bodies recovered, funeral prayers offered.
GUJRANWALA: (Dunya News) – At least 19 lives were on Thursday lost as a railway bridge collapsed near Gujranwala, causing the train to fall into the river. Relief work is still under process at the scene and 14 dead bodies have so far been recovered and funeral prayers of the martyrs have been offered, reported Dunya News.
Two helicopters of the Pakistan army and expert divers are busy in relief work near Head Chownian while the affected track is also being repaired in order to take the relief engine to the scene. Bogies will be extricated from water with the help of the relief engine.
Corps Commander Gujranwala has been monitoring the relief activities by himself. Engineer Battalion Unit Commander Colonel Aamir Jadoon was martyred in this accident along with his wife and a daughter. Colonel Rashid, Captain Adil, Lieutenant Kashif, Constable Islam, Lance Naik Zafar and sweepers Saleem and Usman were also among the martyrs. Their funeral prayers have been offered in Gujranwala Cantonment.
Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif also attended the funeral prayers. Earlier, Army Chief visited the injured at the CMH Gujranwala.
The train going from Punnu Aqil to Khaarian had an accident at around Thursday noon. There were 6 passenger bogies in the train along with 21 cargo bodies.
Statement made by the assistant driver of the train supported Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique’s fears that there could be a terrorist hand involved in the accident. According to Fayyaz, the assistant driver, a slight rumble was heard when the train reached the bridge and then he remembered nothing. It has also been revealed that the train fell into the river the moment the bridge guard collapsed and that the train’s engine also broke into two.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, former President Asif Ali Zardari, Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan and other political leaders have expressed great sorrow over the issue.
55-year-old driver of the train Riaz, a resident of Block-A Railway Colony, Faisalabad, also died in the accident. His family was taken aback by the news of his sad demise. Neighbors of the family gathered at the house upon receiving the news. Riaz left a widow, 3 sons and 3 daughters behind him.
