1 killed, 20 injured as bus falls into gorge in Shimla
One passenger was killed and at least 20 hurt when the Himachal Pradesh Road Corporation (HRTC) bus they were travelling on veered off the road and fell into a gorge at Hiranagar in the capital town of Shimla. The ill-fated bus was on its way from Shimla to Nagrota Bagwan.
The bus met with an accident near Naltu, Hiranagar, on the outskirts of Shimla town at around 2.20 pm, with residents of the nearby area coming to aid the passengers. Emergency teams soon arrived at the spot and the injured were moved to Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla.
One of the bus’ total 25 passengers died on the spot, while around two dozen others were left with injuries. Two of them are in a critical condition.
Pawan Kumar, the driver of the bus who is undergoing treatment at IGMC, meanwhile, said a speeding truck hit the back of the bus, following which he lost control of the vehicle.
The prolonged response from the authorities did go down well with the public, with Manohar Singh, an eye-witness saying, “A man remained stuck inside the bus for more than three hours, I was there with him. Police reached in time, but the crane that came to pull the bus developed a snag and another crane reached the spot which too remained unsuccessful in pulling the bus.
Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur expressed grief over the accident. He directed for speedy rescue operations and wished for speedy recovery to the injured.
Flash flood in Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti
Meanwhile, heavy rain triggered flash floods in the districts of Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti, causing damage to the public and private property. In a repsite, no loss of life was reported.
Flash flood hit Thangi in Moorang tehsil, Kinnaur, at around midnight and damaged an irrigation channel and main source of drinking water.
Another incident of flash flood was reported from LahaulSpiti’s Tozing Nulla. wherein the Tandi- Udaipur road was blocked.