Boat carrying 50 capsizes in Indus River near Haripur; at least 14 survive
21
Several people are feared dead after a boat carrying 50 passengers from Dedal Kamach in Shangla to Haripur capsized in the Indus River at Burg in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday.
Six bodies, including that of a man, a child and two women, have so far been pulled out of the waters while 14 people survived the incident and swam to the bank of the river, Haripur Assistant Commissioner Arab Gul told DawnNewsTV.
He said about 50 people including women and children were on board when the boat travelling to Haripur from Shangla's Dedal Kamach area capsized in the Indus River at Tarbela, Haripur district.
Gul said rescue work is underway to recover the rest of the drowned people and local sailors are taking part in the effort. Teams of the Pakistan Army's Special Service Group (SSG) have been dispatched to the site as well, he added.
A statement released by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that 35 passengers had been thrown overboard after a boat capsized near Barag village, 9km upstream of the Tarbela Dam.
"Assistance from Army was called by civil administration for rescue/recovery operation. 24 SSG deep sea divers have been sent to the incident site," confirmed the statement.
It further noted that 11 individuals had been rescued alive, while three bodies had been pulled out of the water. A search operation for the remaining individuals is currently in progress, it added.
Nasib, one of the survivors, told DawnNewsTV that the boat capsized because of the movement of livestock that was being transported in the vessel.
Ibadullah Khan, a social activist in Dedal Kamach, said that most of the drowned people belonged to Dedal Kamach and were close relatives of each other.
He said the news of the incident hit the area "like a thunderstorm", leaving its residents in deep sorrow.
Speaking to DawnNewsTV, District Councillor Sultan Nabi noted that the roads in the area where the victims hailed from are not paved and the people have no option but to travel via boats for medical treatment or purchasing items of daily use.
