Pakistan's military said Friday the death toll from an accident to a special train that plunged into a canal because of a bridge collapse has risen to seventeen.

Pakistan Railways spokesman Abdul Rauf Tahir says another passenger train carrying hundreds of people had passed over the same bridge about 90 minutes before the train carrying soldiers fell into the canal.

Earlier, an army official and a government official said the train was being used by Pakistan's army to transport soldiers from the southern Sindh province.

Train accidents are common in Pakistan, where tracks and bridges are often poorly maintained.

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