Thaindian News

Shimla, Sep 5 (IANS) Fourteen people were killed and four injured in two accidents in Himachal Pradesh’s Sirmaur district Monday, police said.

In both the accidents, the vehicles skidded off the road and fell into the Giri river, a tributary of the Yamuna. Four children, two in each accident, survived.

In the first accident, seven members of a family, including three women, were killed when their Maruti van fell into the river near Dadahu village, some 180 km from Shimla, Superintendent of Police Puneeta Bhardwaj told IANS.

She said two children, aged three and six, were the only survivors.

In another accident, a pick-up vehicle carrying nine people fell into the river near Shealbagh village in Rajgarh subdivision, some 100 km from Shimla.

“Seven members of two families were killed on the spot. Two children - one 10 months old and another four years old - survived the accident,” Deputy Superintendent of Police Shiv Kumar told IANS from the spot.

In both the accidents, all the bodies have been recovered from the river. All the victims belong to Sirmaur district.

As many as 3,479 people have lost their lives in the state in the past three years, Transport Minister Mohinder Singh said in the state assembly Aug 26.

“In 97 percent cases, human error and drunken driving are responsible for the accidents, while three percent are due to mechanical failure and bad roads,” he said.