Chakwal: At least five people were killed and 24 others injured when a passenger bus plunged into a deep ravine near Talagang in the early hours of Wednesday.
According to Rescue officials, the bus was travelling from Rawalpindi to Bahawalpur when the driver opted for an alternative route due to the closure of the motorway amid dense fog. The bus took the Talagang–Fateh Jang Road, where the accident occurred at around 2:15am.
Rescue 1122 spokesperson Qazi Muhammad Akram said that as the bus reached near Dhok Pathan village along the Swan River, the driver lost control on a narrow and winding stretch of road, causing the vehicle to fall nearly 100 feet into a ravine.
The bus driver, identified as 56-year-old Abdul Sattar, died on the spot along with four passengers. The deceased also included 40-year-old Zia Ahmed of Kotli Sattian, 33-year-old Muhammad Ishaq from Lodhran, and 45-year-old Ramzan of Multan. The identity of the fifth victim has yet to be ascertained.
Rescue teams comprising 15 personnel and five ambulances reached the site soon after receiving the alert. The rescue operation continued for over two hours, during which the injured and bodies were retrieved from the ravine.
District Rescue Officer Dr Muhammad Atiq said the bodies were shifted to the Talagang Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, while the injured were taken to the City Hospital Talagang, where they are currently receiving medical treatment.
Later, Assistant Commissioner Talagang Suleman Mansha and Deputy Superintendent of Police Malik Azaizi visited the hospital. The assistant commissioner directed hospital authorities to ensure the best possible medical care for the injured.
The incident comes just days after a deadly collision between a bus and a van on Jhang–Faisalabad Road on December 31, 2025, which claimed 17 lives.
Meanwhile, several major motorways across Punjab have been closed due to dense fog amid fears of further traffic accidents. According to Punjab Rescue 1122, rescue teams responded to 1,081 road accidents across the province in the past 24 hours, resulting in 24 fatalities and 1,251 injuries.
