Page 358 - Disaster Accident
30 dead in Uganda boat mishap
A pleasure trip turned tragic for the passengers of a cruise boat that capsized due to inclement weather in Lake Victoria near the country's capital, Kampala, killing 30 people and injuring several others.After the incident, which took place late on Saturday, 27 people have been rescued so far. Rescue operations to trace more bodies are currently underway, police said."27 people have so far been rescued. Marine teams are doing whatever they can to find more bodies," Patrick Onyango, deputy spokesperson for the police told Anadolu News Agency, adding that survivors informed the police that there were 70 to 80 people on board the ill-fated vessel.The official further said that they were waiting for a passenger list to deduce the exact number of passengers on board the cruise.Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake, passing through Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda.In September, over 200 people were killed when a Tanzania ferry capsized in Lake Victoria.
Hulkenberg unhurt after horrifying opening lap crash
Nico Hulkenberg climbed out unhurt after barrel-rolling his Renault car into the barriers in a horrifying blazing opening lap crash in Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The German driver tangled with Frenchman Romain Grosjean's Haas as they fought for position going into the chicane, Hulkenberg resisting his rival's challenger for position. His car was catapulted into the air and rolled at high speed into the barriers where, on impact, flames bust from the rear of the car, which was left hanging upside down. "Are you ok, Nico," the team asked him. "I'm hanging here like a cow," he told the Renault team by radio. "There's fire...There's fire...Get me out." He was soon helped by marshals who had to manually roll the car off the barriers before assisting him in climbing out. Hulkenberg was able to walk away and talk to marshals and medical staff. Grosjean asked his Haas team if Hulkenberg was ok and, after being told he was, he added that he had nowhere to go when they crashed. The race ...
Iraq floods leave 21 dead in two days: health ministry
At least 21 people have died and tens of thousands displaced by heavy rains that have battered Iraq over two days, the health ministry and United Nations said on Sunday. Women and children were among the dead, health ministry spokesman Seif al-Badr told AFP. Some had drowned, but others had died in car accidents, were electrocuted, or were trapped when their houses collapsed. At least 180 more were injured, he added. Iraq and neighbouring countries have been hit by heavier-than-average rainfall in recent weeks, resulting in deaths and widespread damage. The country's north has borne the brunt of it, and the UN's Iraq office said the downpour had forced tens of thousands of people out of their homes. An estimated 10,000 people in Salahaddin province and 15,000 people in Nineveh are in desperate need of help, including families living in displacement camps, the UN said. In the Al-Sharqat district in Salahaddin, about 250 kilometres (150 miles) north of Baghdad, thousands of homes were .
9 dead, 51 injured as bus falls into river in Himachal
At least nine people were killed and 51 injured when a speeding bus they were travelling in fell from a bridge into a river in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district on Saturday, police said. The accident took place near Khadri village on the Renuka-Dadahu-Nahan road, about 168 km south of Shimla, at around 4.30 pm. The private bus was on its way from Renuka Ji to Nahan when the driver lost control, broke the railing of the Jalal bridge and fell 40-feet down into the Jalal river, said Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Virender Singh Thakur. Four passengers, including three women, died on the spot, while five critically-injured persons succumbed to their injuries in a hospital. Twenty-five people are under treatment in the Nahan medical college and Dadahu sub-divisional hospital, the ASP told PTI. Thakur, who reached the spot and supervised the rescue operation, said prima facie the accident happened due to the negligence of the bus driver. According to eyewitnesses, the bus was ..
9 people dead after bus falls into gorge in Himachal
At least nine persons have been killed after a private bus they were travelling in plunged into a gorge near Dadahu in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur.Additional Superintendent of Police of Sirmaur district, Virender Thakur, said the bus was on its way from Renuka area to Nahan. Those injured have been taken immediately to Nahan district hospital, he added.A rescue and relief operation in the accident area is currently underway.In another incident that took place earlier in the day, as many as 21 people were injured after a tourist bus they were travelling in fell into a gorge at Kiari Nallah on the Solan-Shimla border.Two people, including the driver, got seriously wounded while the rest sustained minor injuries.The bus was on its way to Delhi from Junga in Shimla district when the accident took place at around noon. All the injured passengers were rushed to a hospital in Junga.
At least 30 drown in Uganda pleasure boat disaster
Thirty people drowned and more than 60 were feared dead after a pleasure boat sank in Lake Victoria, Ugandan police said Sunday, in the latest such incident on Africa's largest body of water. "Thirty bodies have been recovered and 27 people rescued," said police spokesperson Zura Ganyana, adding the boat had sunk 150 metres from the lakeshore. "According to one of the survivors there were more than 90 people on board," said Asuman Mugenyi, director of operations for the Uganda police. Witnesses claimed the vessel may have been rushed back into service following a renovation in order to take advantage of the profitable end-of-year party season. The boat carrying nearly 100 revellers sank in bad weather on Saturday in the latest deadly incident to affect passenger boats on Africa's largest lake. Lawn games at the Mutima Country Resort, close to the capital Kampala, were pushed aside Sunday to make way for an open-air morgue where police collected the bloated bodies of victims. Boat ...
9 dead, 25 injured as bus falls into river in Himachal
At least nine people were killed and 25 injured when an overspeeding bus they were travelling in fell from a bridge into a river in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district on Saturday, police said. The accident took place near Khadri village on the Renuka-Dadahu-Nahan road, about 168 km south of Shimla, at around 4.30 pm. The private bus was on its way from Renuka Ji to Nahan when the driver lost control, broke the railing of the Jalal bridge and fell 40-feet down into the Jalal river, said Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Virender Singh Thakur. Four passengers, including three women, died on the spot, while five critically-injured persons succumbed to their injuries in a hospital. Twenty-five people are under treatment in the Nahan medical college and Dadahu sub-divisional hospital, the ASP told PTI. Thakur, who reached the spot and supervised the rescue operation, said prima facie the accident happened due to the negligence of the bus driver. According to eyewitnesses, the bus .
21 hurt as bus from Delhi falls into gorge in HP; 6 critical
As many as 21 people from Delhi were injuries after their bus fell into a gorge near Kyari in Himachal Pradesh's Solan district Sunday, police said. The accident took place in the Kandaghat police station area on the Junga-Sadhupul road when the bus was returning to Delhi from a trip to Shimla and nearby tourist places, they said. Of the injured, 15, including the driver and the conductor, are being treated at a community health centre in Junga, whereas six people, whose condition was stated as critical, were referred to the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital (IGMC) in Shimla, they added. Police are yet to verify the exact cause of the accident.
Fire breaks out at bank, none injured
A fire broke out at a private sector bank in the southern part of the city on Sunday, police said. Three fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the fire inside the bank at Harish Mukherjee Road, they said. "Because it is Sunday, the bank was closed. We had to break open the glass windows to get inside and fight the fire. It is under control, but we are still trying to douse pockets of fire. The cause seems to be electrical short circuit," a fire brigade official said.
Himachal Pradesh: Bus plunges into gorge, 21 injured
As many as 21 people were injured after a tourist bus they were travelling on plunged into a gorge at Kiari Nallah on the Solan-Shimla border on Sunday.Two people, including the driver, got seriously wounded while the rest sustained minor injuries.The bus was on its way to Delhi from Junga in the Shimla district when the accident took place at around noon. All the injured passengers were rushed to a hospital in Junga."We rushed here the moment we received the information. The locals helped us in carrying out the rescue operations. Prima facie it appears that the accident happened due to the negligence of the driver," said Desh Raj Guleria, Station House Officer of the Kandaghat Police Station."The vehicle belongs to New Delhi; the people in the vehicle were tourists. We have informed the owner of the vehicle about the accident," added the police official.
Death toll rises to 30 in Uganda boat accident
The death toll in the boat accident on Lake Victoria in Uganda has risen to 30, police said on Sunday.
1 paraglider dead in Bengal accident
A paraglider was killed and another severely injured in a gliding accident in West Bengal's Kalimpong district, police said on Sunday.
Reality show winner under investigation
"X Factor Italy" winner Michele Bravi is under investigation for his role in a fatal car accident here.
1 killed, 4 injured as car rams intocontainer on Vidyasagar
A driver was killed and four persons travelling in the car were injured when the vehicle rammed into a container on Vidyasagar Setu here Sunday. The accident took place at around 5 am when the car hit the container from behind on one flank of the bridge, a police official said. The driver was killed on the spot while the four others, travelling in the Kolkata-bound car which was coming from East Midnapore district, were injured, he said. Two teachers of a high school at Egra and two non-teaching staff of the same institution were among the injured, he said. The injured were taken to S S K M Hospital. It was being investigated whether a defective car part caused the accident or if it was due to a negligent driver.
Death toll in California fire rises to 87
The death toll in northern California's so-called "Camp Fire" rose to 87, officials said late Saturday, adding that the blaze was almost fully under control. Cal Fire, the state fire authority, said in its latest bulletin that the fire - which broke out on November 8 - was 98 percent contained. The office of the Butte County Sheriff said that 249 people remained unaccounted for - a steep drop from 474 missing reported earlier in the day. It added that only 54 of the fatalities have been identified. More than 153,000 acres have been torched, with nearly 14,000 homes and hundreds of other structures destroyed by the powerful blaze, California's deadliest and most destructive fire ever. Previously the death toll had been put at 84. Rain that soaked the Butte County fire area in the past days helped douse the remaining flames, but also made it more difficult for crews searching for bodies. "Areas experiencing significant rainfall following a wildfire are at risk for debris flow and flash .
Strong 6.1-magnitude quake shakes Colombian Caribbean islands
A strong 6.1-magnitude earthquake shook Colombian-owned islands in the Caribbean Sea on Saturday, but authorities said there was no need for a tsunami alert. The quake struck 32 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of Mountain, Colombia, at 0340 GMT Sunday, according to the US Geological Service, which monitors quakes worldwide. Both the Colombian geological service and the USGS said the quake's epicentre was ten kilometers deep. Colombian officials said that the municipalities of San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina -- part of an archipelago of the same name -- were mostly affected. The islands are located some 220 kilometres (140 miles) off Nicaragua's eastern coast. Colombia's national disaster agency said that there was no tsunami alert for the country's Caribbean coastline, and that there were no reports of damage on the islands.
22 dead, scores feared drowned after Uganda boat sinks
Twenty-two people have died and more than 60 are feared drowned after a pleasure boat sank on Lake Victoria, Ugandan police said Sunday. The vessel carrying close to a hundred revellers sank during bad weather on Saturday in the latest deadly incident to affect passenger boats on Africa's largest lake. "Twenty-two bodies have been recovered and 26 people rescued," said Asuman Mugenyi, director of operations for the Uganda police. "According to one of the survivors there were more than 90 people on board." The boat, on which party-goers were drinking, dancing and listening to music, sank a short distance from the shore off Mutima in Mukono District, close to the capital Kampala. Mugenyi said overloading and bad weather were likely to blame. "We expect (the number of passengers) is beyond the capacity of the boat. It was overloaded and unfortunately people were drunk," Mugenyi said. "We suspect the mechanical condition of the boat and the weather contributed to the sinking." "A big ...
High rise buildings should not be permitted on steep slopes of Western Ghats
High rise buildings should not be permitted on the steep slopes of the Western Ghats as the areas are landslide prone, says a study on the recent Kerala floods. The study conducted by a six-member expert panel appointed by the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies (RGIDS) emphasised on the need for a new construction policy on resorts both public and private, especially in the affected hill districts. Government may regulate the public from constructing huge houses and other buildings in areas of Western Ghats in general and to have strict restrictions in the ecologically sensitive areas. Reclamation of flood plains for dwelling sites is to be curbed, said the panel in its report. In the relatively flat areas of Western Ghats (Wayanad, Palakkad and Idukki) special attention should be given for farming vegetables, fruits and horticulture, said the report titled: Kerala Floods 2018- The Disaster of the century. The flood was unprecedented and rainfall in hilly districts were ...
5 Finns killed on hunting trip to Zimbabwe
Five Finnish nationals -- two business executives a owner of legal firm, a leading IT executive and their pilot -- were killed while on a hunting trip when their private plane crashed in Zimbabwe, police said.
Bali ship capsize: Search on for 7 missing crew
A cargo ship carrying 14 crew members sunk in waters off Bali coast in Indonesia, rescuers said they were searching for seven crew members on Sunday.