School van catches fire in Karachi, multiple children suffer burns

KARACHI: Several children endured burns in their school van after it caught fire on Saturday in the Orangi Town area of the city.

According to reports by the police, 14 children were present inside the vehicle at the time of the incident while six of them were rushed to the Civil Hospital burns ward with the rest shifted to Qatar Hospital.

It was further revealed that the children were aged seven to 10 years.

Reports by Geo.tv citing in charge of the burns center, Dr Ahmer revealed: “Of the six children brought Civil Hospital burns ward, four were sent home after being given immediate treatment and two have been admitted. The two children who have been admitted suffered severe burns but are out of danger.”

Moreover, eyewitness reports revealed that the van was stuck in mud after the last child was picked up from his house adding that: “Some children and the driver were trying to push the van when it suddenly caught fire. The children sitting in the van at the time suffered burns."

Early reports suggested that the fire was caused due to a short circuit in the van while police later claimed that the fire was caused by a gas cylinder explosion saying: “There was a LPG cylinder in the van which is in perfect condition.”