Overview
- The van went off a mountain road in Murree on Tuesday and caught fire, injuring 11 people, most of them schoolchildren.
- Several children suffered serious burn injuries, with named victims reported as Arham (about 38% burns), Ayesha (about 42%) and Hassan Talib (about 26%).
- Local residents, Rescue 1122 crews and firefighters evacuated occupants and took the injured to Murree hospitals, while four critically burned children were referred to Rawalpindi hospitals including Holy Family Hospital.
- Preliminary accounts conflict: the district police chief cited brake failure as the cause while an initial technical report pointed to battery sparking and noted the van lacked a fire extinguisher and was carrying more passengers than its eight-person capacity.
- The Punjab chief minister has sought a formal report and ordered zero-tolerance enforcement of school-van safety and vehicle fitness, a move shaped by several recent fatal crashes in the Murree area.