Udhampur, September 4
At least 23 persons were feared killed and 21 injured when an overloaded minibus plunged into the Chenab in the Thathri area of Kishtwar district.
Only 11 passengers have been declared dead officially as the bodies of other deceased are yet to be recovered from the river.
It is believed that 12 passengers, who have been missing, were washed away in the strong current of the river. Kishtwar deputy commissioner Sudershan Sharma admitted that the missing persons might have been washed away and efforts were on to locate them. The district administration might take Army help in the search operations.
H.K. Lohia, DIG, Udhampur-Doda range, said eight persons died on the spot while four succumbed to their injuries in hospital. Five injured persons had been later airlifted for treatment in Government Medical College Hospital.
According to the police, a minibus, on its way from Thathri to Kishtwar, veered off the road and plunged into the Chenab near the Thathri bridge. The injured have been shifted to Doda and Kishtwar district hospitals where the condition of five is stated to be critical. The bus was carrying about 45 persons, police sources said.
