Karachi, Jun 01: Rescuers have retrieved the bodies of 26 holidaymakers who were drowned today when their overloaded boat capsized in a lake in southern Sindh province, police and hospital officials said. "There could now be one or two more bodies under water as the exact number of people who were on board is not known," police official Ramzan Sangijo said.

There were no survivors and a search is underway for more victims, he added.

"Rescuers have fished out 26 bodies from the lake so far and the toll could rise as the search is underway," Mohammad Dawood, a doctor at a local hospital, told a news agency.

The boat overturned in high winds at Khinjer lake near Thatta, some 130 km northeast of the port city of Karachi.

Witnesses said that the boat capsized due to overloading and gusty winds.

The lake is a favourite picnic spot for day trippers from crowded Karachi, thousands of whom line its banks at weekends.

Bureau Report