Rajgarh (MP): Nine persons, including a girl, were killed after a van carrying 11 passengers got swept away while crossing a swollen drain amid heavy rains in Madhya Pradesh's Rajgarh district on Monday, police said.
Two occupants of the van managed to swim to safety following the incident, which occurred around 9 a.m. near Sarangpur town when the van driver was attempting to make his way through the Padana bypass culvert, an official said.
According to eyewitnesses, staff from the local administration and villagers present at the scene had warned the driver not to proceed further. However, he continued, and the strong current swept the van into the water.
Villagers, risking their own lives, tied ropes and launched a rescue operation, managing to pull out some of the passengers, they said. The bodies of nine people were recovered.
Sarangpur SDOP Arvind Singh said rivers and drains were overflowing due to heavy rains on Monday.
He said the driver drove the van into the strong current of the drain near the Padana bypass, and it sank in no time, killing nine people. He added that a case has been registered at the Sarangpur police station.