PESHAWAR, Feb 22: At least 15 people, four of them children, were killed when a bus carrying them to a wedding ceremony fell into a nullah on Friday.

According to police, the bus was going from Budo Samarbagh in the suburbs of Peshawar to Mardan. The driver lost control of the speeding vehicle when it reached near a nullah in the vicinity of northern bypass.

Police said at least eight persons, including six women, died on the spot. Seven others died either on way to hospital or after reaching there.

Of the 27 people injured, at least 10 were in critical condition, they said.

The deceased were stated to be close relatives.

According to some people who took part in the rescue efforts, five children might have been washed away. Efforts were continuing to find them.

An eyewitness said the bus was overcrowded and the accident took place because of the driver’s negligence.

Staff of the Al-Khidmat Foundation and Edhi Foundation said the accident site was far from populated areas and that they could not reach there promptly. That was the main reason why the number of casualties was high.

“We reached the area at least 30 minutes after the accident because the police did not know exactly where the accident had taken place,” one of them told Dawn.

The bus was ultimately hauled out of water with the help of a crane, he added.