Power line hits passengers of crowded Pakistani train; at least 11 killed

PAKISTAN: Dozens of people sitting on the roof of a crowded passenger train were swept off or electrocuted by an overhead power line in southern Pakistan, killing at least 11 people and injuring more than 40 others, a Cabinet minister said.

Minister for Railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that Sunday's "tragic" accident occurred near the town of Sukkur in Pakistan's southern Sindh province.

The fatalities and injuries were caused as people were either electrocuted or tossed off the top of the moving train after they hit by the high voltage power line, Ahmed said by telephone from Brussels where he was on an official visit.

Ahmed initially reported that 15 people died in the accident but, citing updated information, he said that at least 11 people were killed.Salahuddin Haider, a spokesman for the Sindh provincial government, said that the bodies of 10 people were taken to hospitals in Sukkur and the nearby town of Shikarpur, and "scores" of other people were injured in the accident.

It was not immediately possible to reconcile the different death figures given by Ahmed and Haider.

Many of the passengers sitting on the train's roof were Shiite Muslims who were traveling to the town of Rohri, near Sukkur, to attend a religious gathering, said Ahmed Khan, a railroad official in Sukkur.

Some of those sitting on the roof carried religious flags and other symbols that apparently struck the overhead electricity line, electrocuting and throwing people off the train, he said.

It was not known how many people were on the train's top but Khan said the train was crowded and those who could not get inside clambered to the roof.

Shiite Muslims gather at a mosque in Rohri in connection with the annual mourning festival of Ashoura, in which Shiites express grief over the killing of Imam Hussain, the grandson of Islam's prophet Muhammad, Khan said.

The final day of Ashoura is on Tuesday, where Shiite stage processions, carrying religious flags and other symbols and beat their chests in a sign of grief.

The accident occurred about 360 kilometers (223 miles) northeast of Karachi, the capital of Sindh.

Karachi, Monday, AP