Three girls were crushed to death while one was left critically injured by a speeding vehicle on their way to school in Gilgit’s Baseen area on Thursday morning, officials said.

Gilgit Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Zahoor Ahmed told Dawn.com that a Prado, which was also transporting schoolgirls, ran over four schoolgirls who were walking to school on the Gilgit-Ghizer Highway.

Residents and passersby rushed to the scene and immediately transported the injured girls to Provincial Headquarter Hospital, Gilgit, for urgent medical treatment.

“The four girls were brought to the hospital in critical condition,” according to the hospital’s officer-in-charge, Raja Amaldar Hussain.

“Three girls — all sisters — succumbed to their injuries, while their friend was critically injured and is receiving treatment.”

The three deceased were daughters of a resident, Abdul Jalil, who lived close to the school.

Hussain said the bodies of the deceased had been handed over to the family.

Locals took to the streets and protested at the site of the accident, which eyewitnesses say was allegedly a result of reckless driving.

Protesters blocked the road, set the vehicle on fire, and demanded an inquiry into the incident.

SSP Ahmed said a first information report (FIR) is being registered, and an investigation into the incident is underway. He also said that a campaign against violations of traffic rules in Gilgit is underway.

A similar incident occurred in 2023 when three children were killed and as many injured when an SUV ran over them during Eid celebrations in Gilgit-Baltistan’s Ghanche district.