Excelsior Correspondent
MENDHAR, May 18: At least 14 persons were injured when an over loaded Tata Sumo rolled down into a gorge at Kottan village in Dhar Galoon area of Balakote in district Poonch today.
Official sources said that mishap took place when the vehicle No. JK-12/ 7622 was on way to Basuni village from Mendhar town. Total 16 passengers were on board the vehicle and some were sitting on the roof top. Four passengers were sitting at front seat with driver.
When it reached near Kottan village, the driver lost control at a sharp curve and the vehicle was rolled down into the gorge. Luckily, after a few rolls It was stopped with the support of a tree in the gorge, otherwise, survival of most of the passengers was impossible.
The Army jawans from an ROP deployed in the area and nearby unit rushed to the site and they rescued the injured passengers. They shifted eight of them to Sub District Hospital Mendhar while others were provided first aid at nearby Army dispensary. Out of the eight, two seriously injured , Muzaffar Ahmed hailing from Dhar Galoon and Mohd Zabir from Galuta were referred to GMC Hospital, Jammu. The driver escaped from the spot after accident.
The other injured were identified as Gafoor Ahmed from Kandi village; Nusrat Bi, Azir Ahmed and Sajjad Ahmed from Dhar Galoon, Tanveer Ahmed from Galuta and Javeer Ahmed from Kangri Galuta. The police has taken cognizance of the matter.
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