May 21, 2003	Wednesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 18,1424

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RAWALPINDI, May 20: Three women were killed and 12 other people injured after a crowded wagon plunged into a ravine at Loi Bhir on Tuesday, police and injured said.

The route-124 passenger wagon (RIR-9688) was on its way to Faizabad from Sihala when the accident took place.

The wagon driver was overtaking another vehicle when he lost control over the steering while attempting to avoid a rough patch of the road and heaps of crush-stones and sand lying on roadside, witnesses said.

The injured trapped in the wreckage were pulled out by the rescuers and shifted to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, where three women were pronounced dead.

According to the police and hospital authorities, the death toll could rise as another injured woman was in critical condition.

Talking to Dawn, Abid, one of the injured persons, said he did not have any idea of what exactly happened. “When I regained my senses, I found myself on hospital bed,” he said.

The deceased were identified as Shehla Bibi, Munawar Bibi and Hafeez Bibi. The injured included Kausar Iqbal, Mohammad Fazil, Mohammad Jhangeer, Ameer Mohammad, Mohammad Amin, Saif, Sajjad, Irshad, Ms Shamim.

The wagon driver, who is yet to be identified, had been in coma since he was brought to the hospital, the police said.