59 die in Pakistan bus inferno

Karachi: At least 59 people were killed Sunday when a passenger bus burst into flames after hitting an oil tanker in the southern Pakistani city Karachi, officials said.

Xinhua quoted Semi Jamali, superintendent of the Jinnah Hospital, as saying that four others -- a man, a child and two women -- were injured in the ghastly disaster.

Seven people seated on the roof of the bus managed to jump off safely.

She said many bodies were burnt beyond recognition.

Police said the oil tanker's driver was to blame for the accident. The bus was carrying 70 passengers.

The accident occurred on a highway. The bus was headed from Karachi to Shikarpur, a city in the northern part of Sindh province.

The bus driver and cleaner as well as the tanker's driver also survived the accident.

Locals said firefighters were poorly equipped when they reached the site and what they had was not enough to extinguish the leaping flames.

A firefighter countered that the bus was already enveloped by fire when they reached and so it was impossible to save the bus passengers.