Pakistani rescuers were searching for bodies on Sunday after a bridge collapsed in Mardan in torrential rain, killing scores of people, officials said on Sunday. At least 40 bodies have been recovered in Mardan, the second biggest city in North West Frontier Province, and officials fear that the toll might cross 50.
The bridge collapsed on Saturday in a central residential area of the city, about 50km from Peshawar. "People were standing on the bridge and watching the floods when it was washed away. So far, we have recovered 40 bodies but fear more might have died," Javed Ahmed, the top administration official in Mardan, told Reuters.
Ahmed said the central and residential parts of Mardan, which has a population of 500,000, had been flooded due to heavy rains and the damage to property was considerable. "We have rescued hundreds of people with the help of army personnel and police and shifted them to safer places," he said.