KARACHI, March 13: Two people were killed and two others injured on Thursday when a fast-moving bus hit their motorcycles near Karsaz on Sharea Faisal, police and witnesses said.

The road remained choked up with traffic for over an hour as enraged people put the bus on fire following the accident at around 11am.

Witnesses said the UTS 12 route bus, travelling from Merewether Tower to Khokhrapar, went out of the control of the driver due to over-speeding and ran over the motorcycles, crushing their riders. The dead and injured were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where the dead were identified as Mohammed Umer, 26, and Ijaz Ahmed Khan, 32, and the injured as Sakhawat and Sarwar.

Hospital sources said both bodies were badly mutilated. They said one of the victims was unrecognizable as his face had been disfigured.

Family sources said victim Umer, resident of Green Town, was a medical representative with a pharmaceutical company.

His cousin, Mohammed Zahid, who lodged a case against the bus driver, told Dawn that the victim was the eldest among four siblings and the only bread-winner of his family as his father was jobless. The police said victim Ijaz Ahmed was a resident of Saudabad, Malir. They said he was an employee of the Income Tax department. They said Ijaz was fatally wounded in the accident and he died in the hospital.

Sources said the two injured were discharged from the hospital after initial treatment.

Witnesses said the bus driver leapt out of the vehicle and ran away as it finally stopped after crushing the bikers. A few passengers did run after the fleeing driver, but he crossed the road and disappeared.

They said the dead and injured were shifted to the hospital in private vehicles, and the police reached the spot after the mob had torched the bus.

Fire brigade sources said the bus was partially burnt in the fire. Sharea Faisal police said efforts were being made to track down the driver. They said the driver was still unidentified and police were trying to locate the bus owners.