MUZAFFARABAD: A centenarian and his toddler great-granddaughter were among four members of a family who lost their lives while as many others were injured after a van they were on plunged into a ravine in Kotli district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) in the small hours of Monday morning, an official said.

Sardar Umar Farooq, Assistant Commissioner of Nakyal, told Dawn by telephone that the ill-fated family had initiated its journey from Mohra Dharoti village in the closest vicinity of the Line of Control (LoC) in Nakyal sector for Kotli city in connection with preparation of computerised national identity cards of some of them.

However, hardly after covering a distance of 25 kilometres, the vehicle went out of the driver’s control near Topiyan village and fell hundreds of feet down into a ravine, he said.

“The road is quite wide at the spot from where the vehicle fell down, which suggests the person at the wheel, reportedly unfamiliar with the area, might have dosed off,” Mr Farooq maintained.

Ibrar Alam, a Nakyal-based journalist, told Dawn that there were too many potholes in the hilly road which drivers would try to avoid and in doing so some would meet with accidents.

According to Mr Farooq, four persons died on the spot and as many were injured after the fierce accident completely smashed the vehicle.

The deceased were identified as 100-year-old Muhammad Aziz, his granddaughter Sidra, 25, grandson Shahzad’s wife Shazia, 27, and her 18-month-old daughter Noshal. Mr Aziz’s grandsons Shahzad, 31, and Muhammad Israr, 28, and two other relatives Muhammad Zubair, 30, and his wife Arooba, 23, were injured.

Mr Zubair who used to live in Karachi was driving the vehicle, Mr Farooq said.

He said all injured persons were sent to District Headquarters Hospital Kotli from where Arooba was shifted to Rawalpindi owing to her critical condition.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2020