PESHAWAR: The death toll in Kohat’s Tanda Dam boat tragedy has risen to 51 as 21 more bodies of the seminary students were retrieved from the reservoir on the third day of the mishap on Tuesday.
According to the police, the rescue operation is ongoing to recover the bodies of two pupils who are still missing.
It is noted mentioning here that a boat, carrying passengers including madrassa students as well as the boatman, capsized in Kohat’s Tanda Dam on last weekend on Sunday.
In the meantime, hospital sources quoted that five students have been recovering in the hospital. The dead bodies were transported to KDA Hospital.
Meanwhile, the seminary caretaker Shahid Noor said that he himself had seated 50 children in the boat, including one of his sons and six nephews.
“Among the martyrs are my son Muhammad Talha and my nephews,” he said.
The caretaker government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has taken notice of the incident.
Caretaker provincial minister Khushdil Khan has ordered an inquiry and directed the Kohat administration to submit a report on the incident.
Caretaker KP Chief Minister Azam Khan expressed his grief over the tragedy and instructed the commissioner and deputy commissioner of Kohat to personally supervise the rescue operation.
The incident took place on Sunday, when a boat carrying over 30 passengers, including seminary students as well as the boatman, capsized in Kohat’s Tanda Dam.
Over 50 students of a seminary in the village Mir Badshah Khel had reportedly come to the dam for a picnic. On the first trip, the boat successfully transported 15 students to the other side of the dam.
However, the overloaded boat capsized in the middle of the dam the second time when it was carrying over 30 passengers.
Kohat Regional Police Officer Dar Ali Khattak, District Police Officer Abdul Rauf Babar Qaisarani, and army personnel reached the scene as soon as news of the tragedy reached them.
To assist the army divers, teams were summoned from Kohat and Peshawar.
Kohat Deputy Commissioner Mahmood Aslam said venturing into the dam was closed by the authorities for recreational trips.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023