At least 48 dead as bus crashes into 700ft ravine in Indian Himalayas

At least 48 dead as bus crashes into 700ft ravine in Indian Himalayas

The bus crashed into a gorge in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand

At least 48 people have died following a crash which saw a bus plunge off a Himalayan mountain road and into a 700ft-deep ravine, officials have said.

Police say a rescue operation is ongoing to reach casualties and that others are injured after the accident in the Pauri Garhwal district in Uttarakhand, northern India.

The 28-seater bus, which was travelling from Bhoan to Ramnagar, was carrying around double the amount of passengers, officials said.

At least seven other people are believed to be critically injured.

"People were packed like sardines," said police officer Jagat Ram Joshi.

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Image: Police say a rescue operation is ongoing

Trivendra Rawat, the chief minister of Uttarakhand, said the bus skidded and fell into a 700ft (213m) deep gorge.

Senior police official Sanjay Gunjiyal said 20 bodies had so far been pulled out of the wreckage, but that rescue work was being hampered by bad weather.

The cause of the crash is not yet known but Mr Gunjiyal said rain could have caused the bus to skid off the road.

He said: "It is raining (in the area) since morning. Two days back there was a landslide in that area."

Residents were the first on the scene to help the victims, he said.

More than 110,000 people are killed every year on India's deadly roads.

Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and ageing vehicles.</s>At least 30 people have been killed after an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road into a gorge in northern India.

At least 30 people have been killed after an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road into a gorge in northern India.

At least 30 dead in India after bus plunges off mountain road

Trivendra Rawat, chief minister of Uttarakhand state, said the bus skidded and fell into a 700ft deep gorge.

About a dozen others are injured, the official added.

Senior police official Sanjay Gunjiyal says rescue work is being hampered by poor weather. He says rescuers have so far pulled out 20 bodies.

India has the world's deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed annually. Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and ageing vehicles.</s>At least 48 people were killed today when an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road into a gorge in northern India, officials said.

Chief Minister of Uttarakhand state Trivendra Rawat said the bus fell into a 213-metre-deep deep gorge in the Himalayan foothills.

He said about a dozen other people were injured and some of them were taken to the AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) hospital in Rishikesh.

Police official Manoj Kumar said rescuers recovered 48 bodies from the accident site.

According to police, the 28-seat bus was carrying about 60 people.

India has the world's deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed annually.

Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and aging vehicles.</s>Forty eight people were killed when an overcrowded bus spun off a slippery road and fell into a deep ravine in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand on Sunday, police said.

Uttarakhand’s inspector general of police, law and order, Deepam Seth, said 45 people were killed instantly and three others died after being taken to the nearest primary healthcare facility in Ramngar. Twelve others were being treated for injuries, he added.

Inspector general of police, state disaster response force, Uttarakhand, Sanjay Gunjyal told media in Dehradun that initial reports revealed that the bus was carrying more passengers than its capacity and the condition of the road was also being investigated.

READ MORE: At least 12 children, driver killed after train slams into school bus in India

A local police official from Pauri, the location of the accident, said the 28-seater bus was carrying 59 passengers. He declined to be identified since he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Local media reported that rescue operations were over and victims were being identified by relatives and friends.</s>(KK Production via AP). In this grab made from video provided by KK Productions, shows the area of a deadly bus accident in Uttarakhand's Paudi Garhwal district, northern India, Sunday, July 1, 2018. Chief Minister of Uttarakhand state Trivendra Rawat ...

LUCKNOW, India (AP) - At least 48 people were killed on Sunday when an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road into a gorge in northern India, officials said.

Chief Minister of Uttarakhand state Trivendra Rawat said the bus fell into a 213-meter- (700-foot-) deep gorge in the Himalayan foothills. He said about a dozen other people were injured and hospitalized.

Police official Manoj Kumar said rescuers recovered 48 bodies from the accident site.

"People were packed like sardines," said another police officer, Jagat Ram Joshi. He said at least seven of the injured were in critical condition.

Earlier, rescue and retrieval work was hampered by inclement weather, said senior police official Sanjay Gunjiyal.

Police said the 28-seat bus was carrying about 60 people.

It wasn't clear what caused the crash, but Gunjiyal said bad weather could have caused the bus to skid off the road.

"It is raining (in the area) since morning. Two days back there was a landslide in that area," he said, adding that residents were the first to reach the site and help the victims.

Gunjiya said the terrain was inhospitable and communications were poor.

India has the world's deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed annually. Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and aging vehicles.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>Bus crash in northern India kills at least 48 people

At least 48 people are dead after an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road and into a gorge in northern India, according to officials.

Chief Minister of Uttarakhand state Trivendra Rawat said the bus fell into a 213-metre deep gorge in the Himalayan foothills.

He said about a dozen other people were injured and hospitalised.

Police said the 28-seat bus was carrying about 60 people.

"People were packed like sardines," police officer Jagat Ram Joshi, said.

He said at least seven of the injured were in critical condition.

Police official Manoj Kumar said rescuers recovered 48 bodies from the accident site.

Earlier, rescue and retrieval work was hampered by inclement weather, senior police official Sanjay Gunjiyal said.

It was not clear what caused the crash, but Mr Gunjiyal said bad weather could have caused the bus to skid off the road.

"It is raining [in the area] since morning. Two days back there was a landslide in that area," he said, adding that residents were the first to reach the site and help the victims.

Mr Gunjiya said the terrain was inhospitable and communications were poor.

India has the world's deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed annually.

Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and aging vehicles.</s>MUMBAI: Forty eight people were killed and eleven injured when an overcrowded bus spun off a slippery road and fell into a deep ravine in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand on Sunday, police said.

"It was a 28-seater bus but was carrying 59 passengers," said a police official at the office of senior superintendent of police from the local area called Pauri where the accident took place. He declined to be identified since he was not authorised to speak to the media. "It looks like due to overcapacity and bad road conditions, the bus toppled off. "Rescue operations are complete and police are trying to get the dead bodies identified by relatives and friends, the police official said. PM Modi tweeted saying he was "extremely saddened by the bus accident in Pauri Garhwal" while Uttarakhand state Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has ordered a probe into the accident.</s>More than 40 people have died as a bus fell into a gorge in a mountainous region of northern India.

The incident on Sunday occurred in Nanidhanda area of Pauri Garhwal district in the state Uttarakhand.

The reasons behind the accident are not yet clear.

"As per official records, 45 people are dead, while many are injured," Surendra Agrawal, official at the Chief Minister's Office in Uttarakhand told Al Jazeera.

"Over 50 people were travelling in the bus," he added. "A probe will determine the reason of the accident, it could be human error or a technical snag."

India's National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) was called to the crash site and is continuing its efforts to reach any passengers trapped in the wreckage.

The injured have been rushed to hospital.

The Chief Minister of the state of Uttarakhand said a "magisterial enquiry has been ordered".

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office tweeted that Mr Modi was "extremely saddened" over the news of the deaths.

Road accidents are frequent in India with uncontrolled traffic junctions, badly maintained vehicles, poor driving standards blamed for most incidents.

In India, a person is killed in a road accident every four minutes, according to government data.

A total of 480,000 road accidents took place in India in 2016 which resulted in the loss of 150,000 lives and injured 494,000 people.

A planned law with tougher rules aimed at improving one of the world's worst road-safety records is yet to pass muster through India's parliament.

About 1.2 million Indians were killed in car accidents between 2004-2014, while 5.5 million were seriously injured.</s>New Delhi: At least 40 people died when a bus fell into a gorge in the Indian hill state of Uttarakhand.

Sunday's accident took place in Dhumakot area of Pauri Gaehwal district, police official Sanjay Singh said.

At least 11 people are injured, he added.

Chief Minister of Uttarakhand state Trivendra Rawat said the bus skidded and fell into a 213-metre deep gorge.

Senior police official Sanjay Gunjiyal said rescue work was being hampered by inclement weather. He says rescuers have so far pulled out 20 bodies.</s>At least 48 people were killed on Sunday when an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road into a gorge in northern India, officials said.

At least 48 people were killed on Sunday when an overcrowded bus plunged off a mountain road into a gorge in northern India, officials said.

48 killed as overcrowded bus plunges into gorge in India

Chief minister of Uttarakhand state Trivendra Rawat said the bus fell into a 700ft deep gorge in the Himalayan foothills.

He said about a dozen other people were injured and taken to hospital.

Police official Manoj Kumar said rescuers recovered 48 bodies from the accident site.

“People were packed like sardines,” said another police officer, Jagat Ram Joshi. He said at least seven of the injured were in a critical condition.

Earlier, rescue and retrieval work was hampered by bad weather, said senior police official Sanjay Gunjiyal.

Police said the 28-seat bus was carrying about 60 people.

It was not clear what caused the crash, but Gunjiyal said bad weather could have caused the bus to skid off the road.

“It is raining (in the area) since morning. Two days back there was a landslide in that area,” he said, adding that residents were the first to reach the site and help the victims.

Gunjiya said the terrain was inhospitable and communications were poor.

India has the world’s deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed annually.

Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and ageing vehicles.
A bus skids off a mountain road into a 700-foot (210 m)–deep ravine in Uttarakhand, India, killing at least 48 people.