At least 14 people were killed and 12 others were injured when a Mazda truck fell in a ditch on Panj Pir Manawan Road in Khushab district, officials said on Saturday.

According to a press release from Rescue 1122, the truck was travelling from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu to Punjab’s Naushera when the accident occurred. District Rescue Officer Hafiz Abdul Rasheed said the accident was caused by a brake failure.

Images from the scene show the vehicle had overturned onto its side.

Rasheed added that 14 people were killed at the scene, while 12 others were injured. Rescue personnel provided on-site medical aid to four people with minor injuries. The other eight were rushed to Tehsil Headquarters Hospital Naushera with “serious injuries”.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed grief over the accident and extended his condolences to the families of the deceased. He also prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.

Punjab is no stranger to severe road accidents. In August 2023, at least 18 people were killed when a passenger bus caught fire after colliding with a pick-up truck laden with drums of diesel on the motorway near Pindi Bhattian.

Road accidents with high fatalities are common in the country due to lax safety measures, poor driver training and decrepit transport infrastructure.

Passenger buses and trucks are frequently crammed to capacity and seatbelts are not commonly worn, meaning high death tolls from single-vehicle accidents are common.

According to the World Health Organisation estimates, more than 27,000 people were killed on Pakistan’s roads in 2018.