Rajgarh (MP) | Nine persons, including a girl, were killed after a van carrying 11 passengers got swept away while crossing a swollen nullah (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 that occurred around 9 am 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. But he continued, and within moments, 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, including a girl, were recovered.

Sarangpur SDOP Arvind Singh said rivers and drains were overflowing due to heavy rains on Monday.

The driver carelessly drove the van into the strong current of the drain on the road near the Padana bypass, and it sank in no time, killing nine people, he said, adding that a case has been registered at the Sarangpur police station.