13 killed as train derails in Pakistan

Islamabad: At least 13 people were killed and 100 others injured when four coaches of the Jaffar Express derailed in Pakistan's Balochistan province on Tuesday, the media reported.

The dead included the driver and the assistant driver of the train which derailed in Bolan district while it was en route to Rawalpindi from Quetta, the capital city of Balochistan province, Geo Tv reported.

A senior railway official was earlier quoted as saying that 20 people had died and over 100 others injured in the mishap, but rescue sources confirmed that 13 people had died as a result of the derailment, Dawn online reported.

Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique said 12 people died in the accident.

The accident took place as the brakes of the train failed, Balochistan home secretary Akbar Hussain Durrani said.

The injured were shifted to hospitals in Quetta city where an emergency has been declared in all the hospitals.

A quick rescue force along with ambulances reached the accident site, according to a statement issued by the army's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Two MI-17 helicopters of the Pakistan Army were also flown from Quetta for the rescue operation, the statement added.

Earlier this month, three passengers of the Jaffar Express were killed and 11 injured in a bomb blast on a railway track in Mastung district of Balochistan province.