Death Toll In Uttarakhand Roadways Bus Mishap at Bhimtal Goes Up To Five

One of the critically injured passengers has been airlifted to AIIMS, Rishikesh.

Haldwani: The death toll in the roadways bus accident on Wednesday in Bhimtal area of ​​Nainital has gone up to five.

Out of the total 29 passengers travelling in the bus, 24 were injured in the accident. While the condition of six still remains critical, one of the injured was airlifted to Rishikesh AIIMS after his condition deteriorated. The state roadways bus enroute to Haldwani from Pithoragarh had fallen into a 200 metre deep gorge near Saldi in Bhimtal. While four passengers died on the spot and 25 were injured, 21-year-old Diksha Prakash succumbed while undergoing treatment on Thursday morning. With this the toll in the mishap went up to five.

Those injured in the mishap are being treated at Sushila Tiwari Hospital in Haldwani. Principal of Sushila Tiwari Hospital, Dr Arun Joshi said that the injured are being given proper treatment. While the critically injured patients have been kept in the ICU, the condition of six patients remains critical. One patient has been airlifted to Rishikesh AIIMS.

Tiwari said the health condition of a few of the injured is improving. A team of doctors from Rishikesh is treating the critically injured at Sushila Tiwari Hospital. A few passengers said the bus fell into the ditch while trying to avert a collision with a car bearing Delhi registration number. The driver and conductor of the bus also suffered critical injuries in the mishap.

After the mishap, police had rushed to the spot and rescued passengers with the help of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), fire department and locals. However, the steep slope made it an uphill task for the rescuers to take the trapped passengers out. The injured were carried on the shoulders and ropes were used to drag some of them. About 15 ambulances were pressed into action to ferry the injured passengers to the nearest health facilities. The wounded were taken to the community health centre in Bhimtal where they were administered first aid.