Shimla, February 14
Seventeen persons, including a child, were killed on the spot and two injured when a truck (tipper) of the General Reserve Engineering Force (GREF) carrying workers plunged into a 200-foot-deep gorge near Spillo in the tribal Kinnaur district today.

The accident took place when the Pooh-bound workers were forced to return to the base station at Spillo due to heavy snow. The workers, who mostly belonged to Jharkhand, had little chance of survival as the truck fell straight on the bank of the Sutlej from the road. Soma, who managed to jump from the open vehicle, was one of the two lucky survivors. He was hospitalised at Spillo, while the other injured was shifted to Pooh. The driver was among those killed. The victims comprised three officials, 13 workers and a child.

Additional District Magistrate, Pooh, Sanjay Sharma reached the spot immediately and supervised the relief operations carried out with the help of local people and teams of the Border Roads Organisation and the ITBP.

He said the mishap took place at C-curve, which was not very sharp. However, the casualties were high as the vehicle plunged at 90 degrees and there was no space for rolling on the precipitous terrain.

The cause of the accident is being investigated by the police.

Hamir Lama, pradhan of Spillo, Tej Singh, inspector of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, and the local Station House Officer struggled hard to bring the bodies up from the river bank.

Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal expressed grief over the death of 17 persons. Pradesh Congress Committee chief Kaul Singh also expressed shock over the fatal mishap and conveyed his sympathies to the bereaved families. Tejwant Negi, MLA from Kinnaur, also expressed grief over the accident.