The bodies of four young tourists from the Gujrat district of Punjab, who had disappeared for more than a week during a road trip in Skardu, were found on Saturday after the discovery of their vehicle in a ravine near Astak Nallah along the Gilgit-Skardu road.
The victims – identified as Wasif Shahzad, 36 years old; Umar Ehsan, 20 years old; Salman Sindhu, 23 years old; And Usman Dar, 23 years old – was part of the same extended family and started from Gujrat on May 12 for a visit to northern Pakistan, notably Gilgit, Hunza and Skardu.
A video surveillance camera saw the vehicle on Jaglot Skardu Road at 10:37 am on May 16 in the Sasi region (Gilgit-Baltistan police)
The authorities said the last known contact with the group was on May 15 when they stayed in a guest house in Danyor near Gilgit. The next morning, they left for Skardu but lost the contact shortly after.
After the families reported them disappeared, the police launched a research operation through the control points and the mountainous areas. Video surveillance images later showed their car on the Jaglot-Skardu road at 10:37 am on May 16 in the Sasi region.
However, there was no file of the vehicle passing through the Dambodas checkpoint.
The car was finally located on Friday in a deep throat near Ganji Padi, a dangerous section of the road. The 1122 rescue managers confirmed that three bodies were found inside the wreckage and one outside. Local police, rescue teams and tourism police participated in the recovery effort.
Gilgit-Baltistan government spokesperson Iman Shah confirmed deaths and expressed his condolences to families.
