Haridwar, April 23: Eight people lost their lives and two others sustained injuries on Thursday when a utility pickup vehicle veered off the road and plunged into a deep gorge in the Chamba area of Uttarakhand’s Tehri district. Officials stated that the passengers, residents of Thyoldhar village in Ghansali, were traveling in a Bolero Camper at the time of the incident.
Tehri District Magistrate Nitika Khandelwal affirmed that the group was returning home after performing the last rites of a fellow villager in Haridwar. Preliminary reports suggest the driver lost control of the vehicle, which was carrying approximately 10 passengers. Following a distress call to the 112 emergency service, rescue teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), local police, and fire services were immediately dispatched to the site.
Emergency personnel recovered eight bodies from the wreckage and shifted the two survivors to a nearby hospital for urgent care. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy and directed the district administration to prioritize the medical treatment of the injured. He maintained that the government would provide all necessary support to the bereaved families during this difficult time.
Rescue operations continued throughout the day to ensure all occupants were accounted for. A senior official noted that while eight fatalities have been confirmed, the focus remains on the recovery and stabilization of those rescued from the gorge. Local authorities have initiated an investigation into the technical causes of the crash to prevent similar accidents on the steep terrain.
