MULTAN: A Karachi-bound passenger train derailed in Pakistan's Punjab province early on Tuesday, leaving at least five people dead and 35 injured, police and Pakistan Railways officials said, in one of the deadliest rail accidents in the country this year.
The Rehman Baba Express was travelling from Karachi in the south to Peshawar in the northwest when several coaches came off the tracks at around 5:15 am near Sher Shah Bridge in Sher Shah city, Multan district. The derailment scattered coaches across the railway line and triggered a large-scale rescue operation involving police, railway staff and local volunteers.
Conflicting early casualty reports
Casualty figures differed in early official accounts. Police, quoted by Geo News in the first hours after the accident, said at least six people had been killed and 30 injured. A subsequent update from police and Pakistan Railways officials put the toll at at least five killed and 35 injured. Railway spokesman Kaleem Akhtar confirmed the derailment and said relief teams had been rushed to the spot.
The injured were shifted to Nishtar Hospital in Multan, where emergency wards were placed on alert. Rescue officials said operations at the site were continuing through the morning as teams searched damaged coaches for trapped passengers.
Cause not yet established
Authorities have not yet announced a cause for the derailment. Pakistan's rail network has seen repeated accidents in recent years, often blamed on ageing tracks, deferred maintenance and signalling failures. The country's worst recent rail disaster, the 2021 Ghotki collision in Sindh, killed more than 60 people.
The Rehman Baba Express is a popular passenger service connecting Karachi with the north of the country. Tuesday's accident is expected to disrupt traffic on the busy Karachi–Peshawar main line, the backbone of Pakistan's rail network, while restoration work continues.
Sources: News9live — Pakistan passenger train derails, killing 5 and injuring 35 (Oct 13, 2026); The Times of India — Breaking news live updates (Oct 13, 2026)
The Rehman Baba Express was travelling from Karachi in the south to Peshawar in the northwest when several coaches came off the tracks at around 5:15 am near Sher Shah Bridge in Sher Shah city, Multan district. The derailment scattered coaches across the railway line and triggered a large-scale rescue operation involving police, railway staff and local volunteers.
Conflicting early casualty reports
Casualty figures differed in early official accounts. Police, quoted by Geo News in the first hours after the accident, said at least six people had been killed and 30 injured. A subsequent update from police and Pakistan Railways officials put the toll at at least five killed and 35 injured. Railway spokesman Kaleem Akhtar confirmed the derailment and said relief teams had been rushed to the spot.
The injured were shifted to Nishtar Hospital in Multan, where emergency wards were placed on alert. Rescue officials said operations at the site were continuing through the morning as teams searched damaged coaches for trapped passengers.
Cause not yet established
Authorities have not yet announced a cause for the derailment. Pakistan's rail network has seen repeated accidents in recent years, often blamed on ageing tracks, deferred maintenance and signalling failures. The country's worst recent rail disaster, the 2021 Ghotki collision in Sindh, killed more than 60 people.
The Rehman Baba Express is a popular passenger service connecting Karachi with the north of the country. Tuesday's accident is expected to disrupt traffic on the busy Karachi–Peshawar main line, the backbone of Pakistan's rail network, while restoration work continues.
Sources: News9live — Pakistan passenger train derails, killing 5 and injuring 35 (Oct 13, 2026); The Times of India — Breaking news live updates (Oct 13, 2026)
