THARPARKAR – At least seven people were killed and five others injured after an ambulance caught fire following a suspected gas cylinder explosion at a rural health centre in Sindh’s Tharparkar district on Wednesday night.
The incident took place at around 10:40pm at the rural health centre in Dano Dandal village, located in Nagarparkar tehsil, when staff were transferring a patient into an ambulance, Rescue 1122 official Habibullah said.
He said the explosion triggered a fire that engulfed the ambulance, leaving seven people dead and five others injured.
Rescue teams, local officials and Nagarparkar Assistant Commissioner Iram Karim rushed to the site after receiving information about the incident.
The injured were shifted to hospitals in Mithi and Nagarparkar for medical treatment. Health centre staff who were helping transfer the patient were also among the injured, according to initial reports.
The identities of the deceased were being ascertained, while the relevant authorities launched an investigation to determine the cause of the explosion.
The ambulance, operated by the Pakistan People’s Primary Healthcare Initiative (PPHI), was completely destroyed in the fire. The rural health centre is also run by the organisation.
