14 drowned after vehicle falls in Indus river in Pak

PESHAWAR: At least 14 people drowned when the vehicle they were travelling in veered off a mountainous road and fell into the Indus River in northwest Pakistan.

The incident happened on Sunday in the Shalkan Abad area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kolai Palas Kohistan when the vehicle, carrying 21 people, veered off the mountainous road and fell into the Indus river, police said.

“Due to bad condition of the roads, the vehicle fell into Indus River,” a senior police officer was quoted as saying by the Dawn newspaper.

He said that some people managed to jump out of the falling vehicle and most of them sustained minor injuries.

District police officer of Kolai-Palas, Mohammad Iftikhar, said that the toll has reached 14 after five more bodies were retrieved from the river on Monday.

“Police personnel and locals are taking part in the rescue operation. The seven who jumped out were injured and have been taken to a hospital,” he said. (AGENCIES)