On 25 June 2017, a

tanker truck Tanker may refer to: Transportation * Tanker, a tank crewman (US) * Tanker (ship), a ship designed to carry bulk liquids ** Chemical tanker, a type of tanker designed to transport chemicals in bulk ** Oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tan ...

exploded near Ahmedpur East in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

's Bahawalpur District, killing 219 people and injuring at least 34 others. The truck overturned when its driver attempted to make a sharp turn on the

N-5 National Highway The N-5 or National Highway 5 (Urdu: ) is a 1819 km national highway in Pakistan, which extends from Karachi in Sindh to Torkham in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Route The N-5 is the longest national highway in Pakistan and serves as an importa ...

. Once the news of the accident spread to nearby villages, hundreds of residents rushed to the scene to loot the truck of its cargo. The truck then exploded; early reports suggested the explosion was caused by someone lighting a cigarette.

Accident

Around 06:00

local time Local time is the time observed in a specific locality. There is no canonical definition. Originally it was mean solar time, but since the introduction of time zones it is generally the time as determined by the time zone in effect, with daylight s ...

(01:00 GMT), a tank truck carrying 50,000 litres of fuel overturned due to the driver sleeping on

near Ahmedpur East, Bahawalpur District, in Punjab, Pakistan. The truck was travelling from

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

Vehari Vehari also spelled Vihari (), is a city and the headquarters of Vehari District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is Pakistan's 62nd largest city. Vehari is about from the historical city of Multan. Vehari is located at the Multan-Delhi ...

. News of the accident quickly spread to the nearby village of Ramzanpur Joya, with villagers being alerted via the loudspeaker on top of a local

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

. A large number of people busy working in mango farms beside the road (one source estimated about 500), including men, women, and children, subsequently gathered at the site to collect leaking petrol. The crowd ignored attempts by police to clear the area. About 10 minutes later, the truck exploded after leaked fuel from its damaged container caught fire, killing at least 148 people. Dozens of those injured died in the following days, bringing the death toll to 219 with 34 others still being treated in hospitals as of 11 July 2017. According to some media reports, the explosion occurred about 45 minutes after the initial truck crash. There were conflicting preliminary reports about the cause of the explosion: some said the fuel was ignited by an attempt to light a cigarette near the overturned tanker, and others blamed a spark from one of the numerous cars and motorcycles that rushed to the scene.

Response

National Highways & Motorway Police The National Highways & Motorway Police ( ur, ), abbreviated NHMP, is a police force in Pakistan that is responsible for enforcement of traffic and safety laws, security and recovery on Pakistan's National Highways and Motorway network. NHMP u ...

suspended traffic and set up two diversions, near Noorpur Nauranga and further ahead of Dera Nawaz. The Rescue 1122 and fire brigade arrived on the site of the incident immediately after the blaze started, and rescue operations were initiated. Firefighters fought the blaze for over two hours before extinguishing the fire. At least 90 of the victims were taken to District Headquarters Hospital and Bahawal Victoria Hospital in

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur () is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. With inhabitants as of 2017, it is Pakistan's 11th most populous city. Founded in 1748, Bahawalpur was the capital of the former princely state of Bahawalpur, ruled by the Abbasi fa ...

. Pakistan Army helicopters were used to transfer 51 injured people from Bahawalpur to

Nishtar Hospital Nishtar Hospital is a teaching hospital of Nishtar Medical University, located in Multan, Pakistan. It is a tertiary care hospital, owned by the Government of Punjab. It serves a large population of South Punjab. Accredited hospital Nishtar ...

Multan Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab. Multan is one of the old ...

Aftermath

Most bodies were burned beyond recognition, many down to their skeletons. At least six cars and twelve motorcycles were burned in the explosion. The highway was littered with kitchen utensils, pots, water coolers, jerrycans and buckets which victims had brought to collect the petrol. The driver of the fuel tanker was kept under arrest for investigation, but he was one of those in critical condition and later died at a hospital. Over 120 dead victims, who were beyond recognition, were buried in a

mass grave A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of execution, although an exact ...

.http://www.newspakistan.pk/2017/06/27/bahawalpur-oil-tanker-victims-buried-mass-grave/ ''News Pakistan''. Retrieved 8 July 2017

Reactions

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime minister of Pak ...

expressed his grief and directed

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

to provide "full medical assistance". He cut short a private trip to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and returned to Pakistan in the aftermath of the explosion. The British High Commission in Pakistan, the Embassy of the United States in Islamabad and

UNSG The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-g ...

António Guterres sent condolences.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bahawalpur explosion, 2017 2017 crimes in Pakistan 2017 disasters in Pakistan 2017 in Punjab, Pakistan 2017 road incidents in Asia 2010s crimes in Punjab, Pakistan 2017 explosion Deaths caused by petroleum looting Disasters in Punjab, Pakistan Explosions in 2017 Explosions in Punjab, Pakistan June 2017 crimes in Asia June 2017 events in Pakistan Road incidents in Pakistan Tanker explosions