Thar Ambulance Fire Toll Rises to Nine
The death toll from an ambulance fire in Sindh’s Tharparkar district rose to nine on Thursday. The Thar ambulance fire toll was confirmed by Mithi Deputy Commissioner Hameed Jagirani, a day after the blast at a health facility in the Dano Dhandhal area of Nagarparkar taluka.
The incident occurred on Wednesday night, when an oxygen cylinder exploded in an ambulance at a Peoples Primary Healthcare Initiative (PPHI)-run hospital. The blast happened while the cylinder was being managed for a female patient in the ambulance. The woman had given birth to a baby boy at a basic health unit, and she was being shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Mithi due to post-surgical complications when the incident occurred.
PPHI District Manager Ibrahim Kumbhar said the deceased also included some staff members of the health facility. Five people sustained burn injuries in the blast, and the toll was reported at seven on Wednesday night before rising to nine on Thursday.
Thar ambulance fire toll: what officials announced
President Asif Ali Zardari ordered a transparent inquiry to determine the cause of the fire. A statement issued by the Presidency said he had also directed the authorities to strengthen safety measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. The president expressed grief over the loss of life, extended condolences to the bereaved families, and wished the injured a speedy recovery.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah announced compensation of Rs2 million each for the families of the nine people killed. He also directed the authorities to ensure that the injured were provided with the best possible medical facilities. He ordered a transparent inquiry into the incident, and he directed PPP MPA Qasim Soomro to travel to Nagarparkar to oversee relief efforts.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also took notice of the incident. He called for a thorough and transparent investigation to establish the facts. Describing the loss of life as deeply distressing, he expressed solidarity with the bereaved families and prayed for the early recovery of the injured. He said those responsible should face the strictest punishment if the incident was found to have resulted from human negligence or a criminal act. He also called for a review of existing arrangements, and for effective measures to prevent similar incidents in Tharparkar.
An update to a story that is still unfolding
This report updates Feature Pakistan’s earlier coverage of the incident, which recorded seven people killed as the ambulance caught fire in Tharparkar. The new toll of nine, the identity of the patient at the centre of the transfer, and the compensation announced by the chief minister are the fresh facts in this update.
What remains unknown is the exact cause of the blast. The official account says an oxygen cylinder exploded while it was being connected or managed for the patient. The inquiries ordered by the president and the chief minister are meant to establish whether the blast resulted from faulty equipment, unsafe handling, or another failure. Until those inquiries report, the cause should be treated as under investigation, not settled.
The incident also raises a wider question about emergency transfers in remote districts. Tharparkar’s health facilities are spread across a large desert district, and patients often travel long distances for specialist care. An ambulance transfer that should have been routine ended in tragedy, and the safety of oxygen equipment on such transfers will now face scrutiny.
That scrutiny should extend beyond one vehicle. Oxygen cylinders are used in ambulances and small health units across Sindh, and the same risks apply wherever cylinders are handled under pressure, in a hurry, or with limited training. Sindh’s health emergencies have repeatedly exposed gaps in remote care, from the rabies toll of 42 in the province to a child’s death from rabies in Hyderabad. The review Bilawal called for, and the safety measures the president directed, will matter more than the compensation, important as that is for the families.
For the families, the immediate facts are grim. Nine people are dead, including health facility staff and a woman who had just given birth. Five injured people are being treated, and the inquiries will determine who, if anyone, bears responsibility.
