Mini-bus falls into Jammu gorge; 22 dead

Banihal/ Jammu: Twenty-two persons were killed and 14 injured when an overcrowded mini-bus fell into a 200-ft-deep gorge on Saturday after its driver lost control over the vehicle on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway in Ramban district, officials said. Among the dead were three members of a family and the driver. Ten critically injured passengers were airlifted from the accident site to the Army Hospital, Udhampur, and two others to Jammu.

The vehicle was on its way to Ramban town from Banihal when the accident occurred at around 9.55 am. The driver lost control of the "overcrowded" vehicle which rolled down the deep gorge at Kela Morh near Maroof, informed DIG (Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban range) Rafiq-ul-Hassan.

Fifteen persons died on the spot while seven succumbed to injuries at different hospitals including two at Army Hospital where they were admitted after being airlifted from the accident site. Local volunteers launched a rescue operation soon after the accident and were shortly joined by the quick reaction teams of police and the Army.