All 25 individuals on board a passenger coaster were killed after the vehicle fell into River Sindh in Rondu tehsil in Skardu district on Monday, Deputy Commissioner Skardu Khurram Pervaiz confirmed.

The coaster was travelling from Rawalpindi to Skardu when the accident took place.

Pervaiz said that the process of recovering and shifting bodies was underway, adding that they are being shifted to a hospital via Pakistan Army helicopters and ambulances.

Earlier, Gilgit-Baltistan government spokesman Faizullah Faraq had said the dead include two children.

The spokesman added that Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Minister Hafiz Hafeez ur Rehman has given orders for an investigation into the incident.

Taking notice of the incident, Gilgit-Baltistan Governor Raja Jilal Hussain Maqpoon expressed his grief over the lives lost in the accident, adding that his thoughts and prayers were with the families of the victims during this difficult time.

In September of last year, 26 people died and at least 20 others suffered injuries when a Rawalpindi-bound bus from Skardu hit a small hill near Babusar Pass in Diamer district.