The police confirmed that five were injured and at least eight people were killed after a privately run bus crashed into a deep gorge near Haripurdhar in Himachal Pradesh in the Sirmaur district on Thursday. The fatal crash happened as the bus that was on its way to Haripurdhar in Solan hit the side of the road and went almost 200 feet down the hill-side before tipping over.
Preliminary reports show that there were approximately 30 and 35 passengers on board the bus at the moment of the accident. It is still a mystery as to what caused the mishap itself and the police have not eliminated the chances of mechanical failure or the difficulty of the road conditions in the hilly terrain.
It is not surprising that local residents were one of the first ones who came in response to the incident. Aware of the crash, villagers got to the scene and started to rescue people before the official teams got there. A number of videos circulating on social media demonstrates local residents and passersby trying to get mangled wreckage passengers out of the bus and shows the level of urgency and importance of the task at hand.
Sirmaur Superintendent of Police Nishchit Negi did confirm that 8 deaths have been reported till now but warned that the number might increase due to the ongoing rescue operation and the availability of information. There were approximately 30-35 people in the bus. The rescue teams are still on the site and on the site more information is yet to be received, he stated.
Police men, medical personnel, and disaster management units were also deployed to the scene of the accident quickly. Those who were wounded were evacuated off the gorge and rushed to hospitals close by to receive treatment. The state of part of the injured is said to be life-threatening.
The government has initiated an inquiry on the accident in order to determine the cause of the crash.
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