ISLAMABAD:’ One person was killed and 17 others were reported missing after a passenger van plunged into a river in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’, read a statement by the rescue official.

Dasu-Kohistan Control Room officials said the van, carrying 16 passengers from the same family including women and children, was en route to Rawalpindi from Chilas when the accident occurred. The van was privately hired by the family for the visit.

The passenger van then veered off into the Indus River in the Pani Bagh area of Upper Kohistan, and got submerged immediately, said the official. The official added,  professional divers of the rescue service along with local volunteers have been taking part in the rescue activities. Also  another team of trained divers has been dispatched from Peshawar city to speed up the rescue operation.

According to reports, the body of a woman has been recovered, Muhamad Hamza, an official of emergency rescue service Rescue 1122 in Upper Kohistan,  adding that rescue teams have been searching for other missing passengers of the van.

Police said rescue teams were still trying to locate the missing passengers; however, they are believed to have died as the flow of the river is currently high and the chances of survival are minimal.

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