Death toll from NW Pakistan explosions rises to 17
ISLAMABAD, April 26: The death toll from Monday's twin explosions in a police station in Pakistan's Swat district of the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province rose to 17 on Tuesday, with at least 70 others injured, health and police officials said.
Confirming the casualties, KP Health Secretary Mahmood Aslam Wazir told Xinhua that the death toll increased after several injured succumbed to their injuries and more bodies were recovered from the debris of the police station building that collapsed following the powerful blasts.
He said that at least eight people among the injured are in critical condition, adding that hospitals across the district have been put on high alert and all the medical staff are directed to report to their respective duties in order to cope with any emergencies.
The deceased included nine policemen, three civilians, and five prisoners in the twin blasts that occurred in the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) police station in the Kabal area of Swat.
Search and rescue operation is still underway at the blast site for the second day, and rescue officials are working on removing the debris as nearby buildings including houses, a mosque, and a school were also damaged due to the impact of the explosions, Shafiqa Gul, a rescue official from the state-owned Rescue 1122, told Xinhua.
More than 100 rescue personnel and heavy machinery have been taking part in the rescue operation, said the official, adding that patients with severe burn injuries have been shifted to Burns and Trauma Center in neighboring Peshawar city.
Commenting on the nature of the explosions, CTD Deputy Inspector General Khalid Sohail ruled out the possibility of suicide attacks or other acts of terrorism as suggested by some officials and media reports earlier.
"There was a store where we had a huge quantity of weapons, explosives and suicide vests recovered from terrorists ... there might have been some blast in it due to some carelessness," he said, adding that the shock waves caused the complete collapse of the CTD building.
A committee has been formed to investigate the matter and ascertain the cause of the explosions and the subsequent collapse of the police station.
Pakistan's Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan expressed sorrow over the loss of precious lives.
