Nine from one family dead as van swept away in flooded drain in MP

Nine members of a family, including three children and three women, died on Monday (August 10, 2026) when the van they were travelling in was swept away by the force of water in a drain near Padana village in Madhya Pradesh's Rajgarh district. The area has been witnessing a flood-like situation following incessant overnight rain.

The van was trying to cross a small bridge over a high-flowing drain near a bypass in Padana village under Sarangpur tehsil when the incident took place around 9 a.m., according to police. There were 11 passengers in the vehicle, and two people were rescued safely, said Sarangpur Sub-Divisional Officer of Police, Arvind Singh.

The victims were residents of Satwas in Dewas district. Barring the driver, everyone in the van belonged to the same family. They were travelling to a religious shrine in Rajgarh's Kadlawad, officials said.

The driver, identified as Mukesh Parmar, survived the tragedy. He owns the van, which had been rented by the family. The vehicle was later pulled out using a crane, Mr. Singh said.

Locals had allegedly warned the driver against attempting to cross the bridge as water was flowing over it. Despite this, he drove the vehicle onto the bridge, and it plunged into the drain, said Sarangpur Sub-Divisional Magistrate Rohit Bamhore. A purported video from the scene shows two locals rescuing one passenger using a rope in neck-deep water.

Rescue teams, including personnel from the State Disaster Emergency Response Force and the Home Guard, reached the spot soon after the information was received. All nine bodies were recovered by afternoon, Mr. Singh said. Post-mortem examinations have been conducted.

The administration has announced financial aid of ₹4 lakh to the next of kin of each of the deceased, Mr. Bamhore said. He added that a preliminary investigation is underway, and legal action will be taken against the driver if negligence is established.

Mr. Singh said that about 45 villages across the tehsil are facing a flood-like situation, with urban areas also dealing with severe water-logging. The area received cloudburst-like rain since around midnight, causing water levels to rise suddenly. "The situation turned bad very quickly in several villages. The administration and the police have been running rescue efforts since early morning to bring people to safety," he said.

The police are investigating the incident. "He (the driver) was rescued from the water as he may have jumped early after realising the situation. We are considering action against him but, right now, our priority is to dispatch the bodies home," Mr. Singh said.