Eight killed in funeral vehicle accident

Eight persons were killed and 10 injured when a funeral vehicle fell into a 300-metre-deep gorge near Lohaghat area of the hilly Champawat district of Uttarakhad on Sunday. The accident occurred when the vehicle was going from Barakot area to Ghat cremation ground in the district, said Dhirendra Gunjyal, the Superintendent of Police (SP) Champawat.

Gunjyal, who supervised the rescue operation at the accident site, said all the 12 injured persons were rushed to nearby hospitals where two people succumbed to their injuries. "Despite the deep 'khud' (gorge) of 300 metre, we managed to complete the rescue operation this evening and retrieved all the bodies," Gunjyal said.