Six dead after boat capsizes in Tarbela Lake

HARIPUR: At least six people were killed including four children and two women after a boat capsized in Tarbela Lake in Khyber Pakhtunkhawa on Wednesday.

According to the district administration, rescue 1122 teams from Haripur, Peshawar, Nowshera and Peshawar are taking part in the rescue operation to search for the missing survivors.

The district administration has also requested Ghazi Airbase and Tarbela Dam project for help in rescue activities.

The boat was carrying passengers along the Indus River from Shangla to Haripur district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa when it overturned.

Officials said, at least 13 people are still missing

"There were 38 people on the boat when the incident occurred and 13 people saved their lives by swimming to the shore," local police official Zahid Ullah told AFP.

"The flow of the water is very fast the river is very deep which has dimmed the chances of survival, however, we will continue the rescue operation till the last individual is found," he said.

Senior police official Muhamamd Ali Babakhel said the accident took place in a remote location with little communication, meaning officials did not learn of it until well after it happened.

"People only came to know about the incident when a second boat carrying passengers passed through the area," he told AFP.

"The rescue operation is still going on but there are little chances of survival," he said.

Babakhel said the locals in the northern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa use boats for travelling because the roads in the area are unpaved and it saves them time. 

— Additional reporting from AFP