Five people drown in Mardan, Chitral districts

Two residents of Gujrat, Punjab among the deceased

MARDAN: At least three people drowned while swimming in Kalpani River in Mardan over the last 24 hours.

A police official told The Express Tribune 26-year-old Sajjad drowned in the river while he was swimming.

Later, his body was found and handed over to the deceased’s relatives.

Separately, a man drowned when he slipped and fell into the river while he was fishing. The deceased has been identified as Iftikhar. Rescue workers and the police have yet to find his remains.

In another incident, 17-year-old Gul Muhammad drowned when he lost balance while swimming. The rescue teams failed to retrieve his body.

At least 334 emergency cases were reported to Rescue 1122 Mardan during three days of Eidul Fitr. Rescue 1122 Spokesperson Bilal Faizi told The Express Tribune 207 calls were made for medical emergency, 93 for traffic accidents, four for rain-related incidents and five for cases of drowning.



At least two people reportedly drowned while swimming in a lake in Chitral.

An official privy to the development told The Express Tribune, the deceased hailed from Gujrat district of Punjab and were visiting Chitral.

“According to initial reports, the deceased have been identified as Asad and Ali Raza,” he said. “They were swimming in the lake when they lost control and drowned.”

A large number of locals jumped into the lake to save them. However, their efforts were futile.

“The police and rescue workers were unable to find their bodies,” he said.

The relevant authorities were trying to search for their remains till this report was filed. with additional input from our correspondent in Chitral

Published in The Express Tribune, July 11^th, 2016.