CHAMBA: Seven members of a family, including three women and four men, lost their lives after their vehicle reportedly lost control and plunged into a deep gorge on the Chamba-Masrund road in Himachal Pradesh's Chamba district on Thursday, police said.
The accident occurred in the morning, prompting police teams to rush to the spot and launch a rescue operation with the assistance of local residents, according to news agency ANI.
Additional Superintendent of Police Dinesh Sharma said, "In the morning, information about an accident was received, prompting an immediate response from the police team with the help of local people. All bodies were recovered. Seven casualties were reported, including three women and four men, who have been sent for postmortem. Further investigation is ongoing."
Local residents joined the rescue efforts and helped recover the bodies from the gorge before they were shifted to Chamba Hospital.
Masrund Pradhan Ravi Kumar said, "Local residents arrived at the scene and helped rescue the bodies, which were then transported to Chamba Hospital. The victims, comprising three women and four men, all belonged to the same family from Kuthed. They had returned late at night after dining out when the accident occurred."
Police said an investigation is underway to ascertain the exact circumstances that led to the accident.
Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed grief over the loss of seven lives in the road accident near Chhatrund on the Masrund-Hamal road in Chamba district.
Offering condolences to the bereaved families, the Chief Minister said the state government stands firmly with them during this difficult time and directed the district administration to extend all possible assistance to the affected families.
He also prayed for peace to the departed souls and strength to the grieving families to bear the irreparable loss.
