8 dead, half a dozen injured as vehicle falls in gorge in Pauri district
Eight persons were killed and six others injured after a utility vehicle they were traveling in fell into a 500-meters deep gorge near Kundhadhar on Devprayag-Pauri road in Pauri district, some 130km from state capital Dehradun, on Sunday morning.
The ill-fated vehicle carrying 14 persons, mostly relatives and family members, was on its way to Pauri from Dehradun when the mishap occurred at Kundhadhar in Sabdharkhal village on Devprayag-Pauri road. The family members were going to their native village in Pauri after a marriage in Dehradun.
“It seems that the driver lost control over the vehicle while negotiating a sharp turn on the hilly route, resulting into the mishap. The vehicle skidded off the road and fell into an almost vertical 500-meters deep gorge. All persons sitting inside the vehicle were related to each other,” said senior superintendent of police (SSP) Pauri, Mukhtar Mohsin.
The deceased were identified as Suman Singh (11), Hema Devi (28), Seema Devi (24), Dalveer Singh (65), Sardar Singh (40), Pratap Singh (60) and Nagesh Jyoti (25). While the identity of eighth victim was yet to be ascertained, a police official said.
“The police teams faced serious difficulties in carrying out the rescue operation as the vehicle fell into very deep gorge and it was not easy for our men to reach the spot and pull back the dead bodies and injured persons,” said SSP Pauri Mukhtar Mohsin.
