KAHUTA: Five people were killed and four remained missing on Thursday after a passenger van rolled off a sharp bend and plunged into the River Jhelum near Garari Bridge in the Kahuta area of Rawalpindi, officials said.
The Toyota Hiace, which was travelling from Hajera in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, was carrying 14 passengers when it lost control while negotiating the turn and fell into the river.
Rescue 1122 said five people were confirmed dead while five others including the driver were pulled out alive. Navy divers later joined the search effort to locate the remaining missing passengers as strong currents hampered rescue work.
Among the deceased were Khawaja Naeem, 45, an assistant professor at a government inter college in Hajira; his mother Fatima Begum, 67; and Adeel Arif, 22. Another victim, Shaukat Khan, a resident of Buner who had been working in Hajira, was identified after his body was shifted to CMH Rawalakot. Officials said the identity of the fifth victim was still being established.
District Emergency Officer 1122 Rawalpindi Sighbatullah said the rescued passengers were taken to Kahuta Tehsil Hospital. Sudhnoti Deputy Commissioner Mumtaz Hussain Kazmi later confirmed that Basit, the driver’s helper and one of the survivors, died from his injuries at a Rawalpindi hospital.
Rescue teams continued operations into the evening in an effort to recover those still unaccounted for.
