MANSEHRA: A man drowned and another was rescued when a vehicle fell into the Indus River in the Zero Point area of Upper Kohistan district on Tuesday.

“We have rescued one of the two men travelling from Dir to Gilgit-Baltistan, and the search for the other continued the entire day, but we couldn’t trace his body,” Upper Kohistan Additional Deputy Commissioner Khurram Rehman Jadoon told reporters.

The vehicle carrying two men was on the way to Gilgit-Baltistan from Dir when the driver, while negotiating a sharp turn in speed, lost control of the vehicle, causing it to skid off the Karakoram Highway and plunge into the Indus River.

A team of the district administration, Rescue 1122, volunteers and a Chinese company executing the Dasu hydropower project, led by Mr Jadoon, launched a search and rescue operation by order of Deputy Commissioner Upper Kohistan Tariq Ali Khan and rescued Mohammad Badsha.

The team continued the rescue operation for Mohammad Khursheed but couldn’t find him.

“We have wound up our operation, which continued the entire day, but we couldn’t rescue or fish out the body of the missing person,” Mr Jadoon said.

He said that to ensure the body was not stuck in the wreckage of the vehicle, it was also pulled out of the Indus River.

During that operation, traffic on the Karakoram Highway remained suspended for half an hour and was later resumed.

The ADC said that the district administration would continue its operation to fish out the body of the missing person.

“We have repeatedly requested drivers and motorists to be extra cautious while travelling in Kohistan districts and avoid speeding on the Karakoram Highway,” he said.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2026