MEHRABPUR, Pakistan, Dec. 19 (UPI) -- The death toll from a train derailment in Pakistan Wednesday reached at least 50 with dozens more people reported injured.
It was estimated 12 of the train's 16 passenger cars left the tracks about 2 a.m. near Mehrabpur, about 25 miles north of Karachi, All Headlines News reported. The train, loaded with 700 holiday travelers, was headed to Lahore.
Sikendar Ali, a senior police official at the scene, told AHN some of the cars were inaccessible. Fifty bodies had been recovered but rescuers feared the death toll could rise dramatically.
The cause of the crash had not been determined but Xinhua, the Chinese news agency, said authorities believed excessive speed may have contributed to the accident.
Hundreds of people from nearby villages had joined relief agencies in the rescue operation but the effort was hampered by darkness, fog and the cold weather, the report said.
