At least forty-nine children died when an overloaded boat capsized in northwest Pakistan, after divers spent three days dragging bodies from freezing waters.
The boys were aged between 7-14, students of a madrassa and had been taken for a day trip to the scenic Tanda Dam lake on Sunday.
"The water was freezing due to cold weather that impeded the rescue mission. But today the divers were able to dive deep to recover the remaining bodies," said Khateer Ahmad, a senior official with Rescue 1122.
The bodies of a teacher and one skipper were also pulled from the water, he added, bringing the death toll to 51.
"Every time a body was recovered from the scene, they would jump onto the diver to see if it was their son and every time we would hear them screaming in pain and anguish," eyewitness told AFP.
"I have not witnessed such scenes in my life, it`s something that can`t be explained in words."
The boat was overloaded; its capacity was around 20 to 25 persons. Five people were rescued including four students and one teacher.
-20241217065341.jpg)
-20241218125459.jpg)
-20241217111054.jpg)
