MULTAN, Pakistan — Authorities have reported that the toll from last week’s explosion of a gas tanker truck has risen to 18, according to police and medical officials as of Tuesday.
Initially, the situation was assessed with reports of five fatalities and around 20 individuals injured when the truck, which was carrying liquefied petroleum gas, ignited in proximity to an industrial zone in Multan, a significant city in Punjab, the most populous province of Pakistan.

Dr. Mohammad Wasim from Nishtar Hospital in Multan stated that an additional 13 people succumbed to their injuries over the past week, while seven others are still in a critical state following the incident on January 27.
Senior police officer Mohammad Bashir informed that the explosion not only resulted in multiple casualties but also caused considerable destruction to nearby shops and residential buildings, with the resultant fire and structural collapses leading to several of the deaths.

Preliminary investigations conducted by the police revealed that the explosion occurred while individuals were involved in transferring LPG from the tanker to cylinders, having bribed the truck driver, who has now been taken into custody.