11 killed, 31 injured as bus rolls into gorge in Kashmir

Srinagar: Eleven people were killed and 31 others injured, three of them critically, when a bus rolled down a gorge at Panzella pass in Kargil district of Ladakh region in Jammu and Kashmir last night.

A report from Kargil said today that the ill-fated bus was en route to district headquarters, Kargil from Zanaskar when it skidded off the road and fell into a deep gorge at Panzella, where the temperature was minus 10 making the slippery.
Rescue teams were immediately rushed from Zanaskar to the spot, the report said, adding that the operation was completed by 2330 hrs despite freezing temperature.
The report said that 11 passengers were killed on the spot and 31 others injured.
The ten injured were rushed to Sub District hospital, Zanaskar while 21 others to Padam hospital, it said, adding that later three of the critically injured were airlifted to Leh.
According to medical superintendent of Kargil, the injured were not out of danger.
The Sub District Magistrate (SDM) Zanaskar has directed that no vehicle will be allowed to ply on Kargil-Zanaskar road after 1500 hrs as the road gets slippery in the afternoon due to minus 3 maximum temperature, which goes further down in the evening.