MULTAN, Jan 9: The death toll in the Bhakkar bus accident has reached 62 as the rescuers resumed operation on Friday to recover bodies from the Thal Canal.

A coaster had fallen into the canal near Bhakkar on Thursday while trying to save a cart. More than 60 people were aboard the coaster against the capacity of 42.

The rescuers could save only five people, while 29 casualties were recorded at the Bhakkar district headquarters hospital when the search operation had to be suspended due to darkness on Thursday.

On Friday, Bhakkar District Police Officer Sahibzada Mohammad Shahzad told Dawn that 62 bodies were recovered in the two-day search operation. He said 57 bodies were handed over to the relatives of the deceased and five were recovered by the families of the victims themselves.

The police and hospital officials identified 60 of the dead as: driver Hussain Shah; Karam Hussain; Kazim Hussain; Nasir Mehmood; Shakil Masih; Saifullah; Mohammad Khan, son of Shah Wali; Tariq; Naseem Ijaz; Ghulam Raza Shah; Khizar Hayat, son of Malook; Ilayas Raza; Ghulam Mohammad; Sher Zaman; Noshair Zaman; Saqlain; Iqbal Hasan; Atta Mohammad; Yaqoob; Mukhtar Hussain; Abdul Razzaq; Allah Bakhsh, son of Ali Khan; Mohammad Mustafa; Abdul Aziz; Mureeda Bibi; Yar Mohammad; Zafar Iqbal, son of Ghulam Yasin; Ahmed Din; Ihsanullah; Shahid Khan; Mussarat; Sajida; Abdul Rasheed; Nazeer Hussain; Imam Bakhsh; Hasnain Shah; Rana Khalil; Ghulam Ayesha; Mohammad Ameen; Hurmat Bibi; Saeed Akbar Khan; Mohammad Haneef; Zafar Iqbal, son of Bahawal Khan; Sajid; Saifel Shah; Niaz Hussain; Shaukat Ali; Shahbaz Hussain; Mohammad Khan, son of Mohammad Imran; Allah Bakhsh, son of Khuda Bakhsh; Elahi Bakhsh; Asif; Bilal Ahmed; Javaid Iqbal; Islam; Mohammad Ramzan; Khizer Hayat, son of Ghulam Rasool; Tanveer Hussain; Qamar Mushtaq and Muhammad Saeed.

The DPO said Nasim Bibi, Abdul Hamid, Mushtaq, Qamar Din and Mohammad Ali were rescued. The police have registered a case under sections 320 and 337(G) of the Pakistan Penal Code at the Bhakhar Sadar police station.