22 killed, several injured in bus accident in Reasi
Reasi (Jammu Province): Twenty two people were killed and over two dozen others were injured when a bus fell into a deep gorge in Jammu Province's Reasi district on Thursday. The bus was on its way from Reasi to Bakal when the incident happened around 3 pm, according to local sources.
The bus, carrying a total of 46 people, reportedly skidded off the road and rolled into a deep gorge. Initial estimates put the death toll at 15, but later that rose to 22. However, a news agency reported that the number of dead at the time of filing this report at 13.00 hours at midnight as 35 after many injured succumbed.
In the meantime, the Western Command said in a statement, “At 1720h, the ‘Condors' (a Mi-17 1V unit located at Jammu) received a message about a CasEvac of victims of a bus accident near Reasi, 70 km north of Jammu. Being on security and base defence duties, a helicopter was on standby, and the unit technicians raced to the aircraft to help launch it without any delay. Within minutes the crew collected their GPS, fed the coordinates, carried out a quick check around the aircraft, and started the helicopter.”
Reasi Deputy Commissioner Ravinder Kumar said the injured had been shifted to various hospitals for treatment. “Eighteen seriously injured persons have been airlifted to Government Medical College and Hospital in an Indian Air Force helicopter,” he said. Some of them were in a critical condition. The bus (JK02S-0295), allegedly packed beyond its capacity, was on way to Bakal village from Reasi when it rolled down a deep gorge near Guru Nanak area of Jyotipuram, killing 15 persons on the spot.
Prime Minister, Governor and Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti have expressed grief over the loss of lives. She asked the district administration to speed up the rescue operation and ensure prompt medical care to the injured. The Reasi DC has released an immediate cash relief of Rs 10,000 each to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 5,000 each for the injured.
“The rescue operation is going on and a police team and the district administration are on the spot,” Reasi SSP Tahir Sajad Bhat had told earlier. They were trying to not only rescue those trapped in the bus, but also extricate the bodies stuck there. They were also trying to bring the bus back on the road.
Local sources say there was a problem with the gear of the bus that led to the accident near a State Bank of India branch in Jyotipuram. They say faulty gear led to the driver of the bus losing control, as a result of which it skidded into the gorge.
