Murree Expressway Van Crash Kills 10 Family Members

A devastating road accident on the Islamabad–Murree Expressway killed 10 members of the same family and left 13 others injured after a passenger van fell into a ravine and caught fire. The tragedy, reported near Khajut on Wednesday, has drawn national attention because of the scale of loss within a single family and the condition in which rescuers found the vehicle.

According to the initial account shared by police and eyewitnesses, the van was carrying 23 passengers when it went off the road. Moments after plunging into the ravine, the vehicle caught fire, turning an already serious crash into a far deadlier emergency for those trapped inside.

Rescue teams and police reached the location after the incident and began removing victims from the wreckage. The operation was difficult because the vehicle had gone down from the main carriageway and had also been damaged by flames, forcing emergency workers to move quickly to recover bodies and shift the injured.

Officials said the bodies of those who died, along with several injured passengers, were taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad. Some injured people were also shifted to a private hospital for treatment, while identification procedures were started for the deceased.

A senior PIMS official confirmed that 10 bodies had been brought to the hospital and that the administration had begun the process of identifying the victims and contacting their relatives. The presence of women and children among the injured made the accident particularly painful for families and hospital staff handling the emergency.

The Islamabad–Murree Expressway is one of the busiest routes connecting the capital with the popular hill station of Murree. The road carries heavy tourist and local traffic, especially during holiday periods and seasonal travel, but its curves, slopes and changing weather conditions can make driving risky when vehicles are overloaded, speeding or mechanically weak.

Pakistan has repeatedly faced fatal road crashes involving passenger vans, buses and smaller public transport vehicles. Many such incidents are linked to difficult terrain, weak enforcement of safety rules, poor vehicle maintenance, driver fatigue and limited emergency response access in hilly or semi-mountainous areas.

The latest crash is expected to renew questions about transport safety on routes leading to Murree and other hill destinations. Families travelling in vans often depend on private operators, making it important for authorities to inspect vehicles, monitor passenger loads and ensure drivers follow speed and safety regulations.

For the affected family, the impact is immeasurable, with one journey turning into a mass-casualty disaster. For the wider public, the accident is a grim reminder that road safety failures can destroy entire households within minutes and place fresh pressure on hospitals, police and rescue services.

Authorities are now expected to complete identification, support the injured and examine the cause of the crash. Any investigation will likely focus on the vehicle’s condition, the driver’s handling of the route, road safety conditions near Khajut and whether further preventive steps are needed on the Islamabad–Murree Expressway.