330 killed in Punjab road accidents in September

330 killed in Punjab road accidents in September

LAHORE: Punjab Emergency Service (Rescue 1122) responded to more than 234,000 emergencies across the province during September 2026, providing rescue and emergency care to 235,750 victims, according to Secretary Emergency Services Department Dr Rizwan Naseer.

Dr Naseer expressed serious concern over the growing number of road traffic crashes, revealing that 41,472 accidents across Punjab claimed 330 lives and left 21,528 people seriously injured, with many suffering permanent disabilities.

He shared the figures while chairing the monthly operational performance review meeting for September. Directors of Emergency Services, heads of various wings and the Provincial Monitoring Officer attended the meeting, while District Emergency Officers joined through video link.

During the meeting, district officials presented detailed reports on emergency response operations, major incidents, challenges and lessons learned during the month.

According to the Head of Operations, road accidents and other trauma-related emergencies accounted for the largest share of Rescue 1122 calls. The service dealt with 56,259 accident and injury cases during the month, followed by 43,669 cardiovascular emergencies, 35,681 gastrointestinal cases, 20,396 respiratory emergencies and 17,829 neurological emergencies.

Rescue 1122 also responded to 14,972 fever cases, 8,685 gynaecological and obstetric emergencies, 8,077 urinary-related cases, 6,986 fire and rescue incidents, 5,756 psychosocial emergencies, 5,525 diabetic cases, 4,679 crime-related emergencies, 4,600 back and joint pain cases and 457 allergy-related emergencies.

Lahore recorded the highest number of road crashes in the province, with 7,430 incidents involving 8,093 motorcycles. Multan reported 2,827 crashes involving 3,286 motorcycles, while Faisalabad recorded 2,560 accidents involving 2,823 motorcycles.

Gujranwala reported 1,937 road crashes involving 2,108 motorcycles, while Rawalpindi recorded 1,587 accidents involving 1,603 motorcycles. Tuansa Sharif recorded the lowest number, with 125 crashes involving 136 motorcycles.

Fire emergencies also remained a major concern. Lahore recorded 343 fire incidents during September, followed by Faisalabad with 132, Multan with 97, Rawalpindi with 94, Rahim Yar Khan with 62 and Bahawalpur with 55.

Dr Naseer said motorcycles featured in around 74 percent of the road traffic crashes recorded during the month. He urged motorcyclists to adopt safer driving practices, remain on the left side of the road and keep their speed below 50 kilometres per hour.

He also stressed that even a small increase in speed can significantly raise the risk of a fatal crash, urging road users to exercise greater caution to reduce preventable deaths and serious injuries.