Page 668 - Disaster Accident
Fire likely cause of 2016 EgyptAir crash: French investigation
French investigators said today a cockpit fire likely caused the 2016 EgyptAir MS804 crash that claimed the lives of 66 passengers and crew, contradicting Egyptian authorities who said explosives traces were found on the victims' remains. France's civil aviation accident bureau, known by its French acronym BEA, said that information gleaned from the flight recorders suggested that "a fire broke out in the cockpit while the plane was at cruising altitude and the fire spread rapidly, causing the loss of control of the aircraft." The Airbus A320 was flying from Paris to Cairo on May 19, 2016 when it crashed into the southeastern Mediterranean, killing 66 people, including 40 Egyptians and 15 French citizens. French investigators had always leaned towards a mechanical fault as the cause of the crash, saying they suspected that a mobile phone or tablet had caught fire. But an official Egyptian investigation suggested the plane had been bombed, claiming traces of explosives had been found ..
Nepal: 18 killed in truck accident
Kathmandu [Nepal], Jul 6 (ANI): At least 18 workers have died when a tipper truck met with an accident at Syangboche of Lo-Ghekar Damodarkunda rural municipality in Nepal's Mustang district."Out of the 18 dead, 12 are males and four are females. They were all workers of Beni-Korela road section, while they were returning back to the work after having their lunch and the accident took place at around 2 pm," Chief District Officer of Mustang, Shishir Poudel told ANI over the phone."The rescue operation is underway. Police personnel have been deployed from Ghani and the locals have been carrying out rescue operations," he added.The accident took place about 50 km away from the district headquarters, Jomsom. Police suspect that the truck lost its balance and tipped over.Two helicopters have been sent to the incident site for rescuing the injured, who have been brought to Jomsom town for medical treatment.Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of Mustang, Mahendra Khadka and police ...
326 Amarnath pilgrims evacuated from Panjtarni to Baltal base camp
The authorities today evacuated 326 Amarnath pilgrims, who were stranded at Panjtarni due to heavy rainfall, to the Baltal base camp. "On the directions of Governor N N Vohra, chairman Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, to Shri Umang Narula, Chief Executive Officer of the Shrine Board, evacuation and rescue operations were launched to evacuate the stranded yatris," an official spokesperson said. He said the virtually non-stop rainfall over the past several days has adversely affected the track conditions, particularly on the Baltal-Sangam-Holy Cave route. Besides landslides at several places, the maximum disruption has been caused by shooting stones and the sinking of the track at certain locations, the spokesperson said. "As directed by the governor, sick pilgrims as well as the aged and women yatris were amongst the first to be airlifted when three Indian Air Force MI-17 helicopters started operating sorties from Panjtarni to Baltal," he added. The governor, accompanied by B B Vyas, ...
40 killed after tourist boats capsize in Thailand
At least 40 people have been found dead and dozens are still missing after two boats carrying tourists capsized in rough seas off the Thai holiday island of Phuket, the government said on Friday.
20 workers killed in Nepal road accident
At least 20 people, including six women, were killed and a dozen others injured when a truck ferrying construction workers skidded off a road in Western Nepal's mountainous Mustang district. The truck transporting workers to a road construction site veered off near Mustang Korala road and plunged 50 metres down the road, police said. The vehicle fell 50 metres down the road at Syanboche, Damodar Kunda Rural Municipality-3, killing 14 males and six females on the spot, police said. There were were 32 workers in the truck. They were returning to the work site after having their meals, they said. Most of the injured are said to be in critical condition. Three of the injured have been flown to Pokhara based Manipal Teaching Hospital in Nepal Army's chopper while 9 are undergoing treatment at Jomsom Hospital in Mustang. The rescue work is underway, police said. Nepal has many mountainous areas roads mostly are narrow. Most accidents in Nepal occur due to poorly maintained vehicles and road
Bodies of three teenaged boys fished out at Juhu Beach
Rescue agencies on Friday managed to fish out the bodies of three teenagers who had drowned off the famed Juhu Beach on Thursday evening, officials said here.
37 dead, 18 unaccounted for in Thai tourist boat capsize
Thai rescuers pulled 37 bodies from waters off the coast of the holiday island of Phuket today after a tourist boat went down in heavy seas with dozens of Chinese passengers on board. Many of the dead were found drifting face down in the water, still wearing life jackets, several kilometres (miles) from where the Phoenix sank after being hit by five-metre (15-foot) high waves in a storm yesterday evening. "The death toll today is 37, with 18 still unaccounted for," said a Thai navy official late today, requesting anonymity. In a grisly development earlier, divers reported seeing "over 10 bodies" floating inside the hull of the submerged boat, according to Thai navy Rear Admiral Charoenphon Khumrasee, who said they would try to retrieve them later today. One survivor, a Chinese woman, was rushed to hospital in Phuket, according to an AFP reporter at the scene, after she was found several kilometres from the boat having spent the night in the water. Her condition was unknown. The ...
Almost all stranded Indian pilgrims evacuated in Nepal
The extensive operation to rescue and evacuate the stranded Indians returning from Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in Nepal was almost over on Friday.
Thai boat death toll climbs to 33, all Chinese
Thai authorities say the death toll in a boat accident off the coast of Phuket has climbed to 33, all of them Chinese nationals. The chief of the Phuket Provincial Disaster Prevention and Mitigation office said today evening that the search for another 23 people missing has been called off until morning. He said the search will resume at 5 am tomorrow. The dead were passengers on a boat that was carrying 105 people, including 93 tourists, 11 crew and one tour guide when it toppled in 5-meter (16-foot) -high seas yesterday. Thailand's prime minister has expressed his condolences to the families of those killed in a boat accident of the resort island of Phuket. In a statement issued today, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha also said the government will "exert all efforts to find those still missing and provide support to all survivors of this tragic event." The accident has left at least 21 people dead, most of them Chinese tourists. Dozens are missing. Thai authorities say the death ...
Major fire breaks out at plywood factory in Rajasthan
A major fire broke out today at a plywood factory in Rajasthan's Ajmer district, police said. Eight fire-tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the flames, they said. No loss of life was reported, Suprintendent of Police Ajmer Rajendra Singh said, adding that goods worth Rs 60 lakh were gutted in the fire. He said that an investigation was being carried out to ascertain the cause of the fire.
46 NDRF teams stationed in flood-prone areas of 14 states: MHA
As part of proactive measures, 46 fully equipped rescue teams of the NDRF have been stationed in flood-prone areas in 14 states, the Union home ministry said today. The National Disaster Response Force teams, comprising 1,384 personnel, have been deployed in vulnerable areas in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Delhi, Punjab, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand and West Bengal, a home ministry spokesperson said. He said the NDRF rescued 20 stranded people, including five pilgrims undertakingthe Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. The teams will assist state administrations in rescue and relief work, the spokesman said. A 24X7 NDRF control room in the national capital is closely monitoring the situation and is in touch with other agencies for additional deployment, he said. In Assam, the Brahmaputra river was in spate todayat Neamatighat in Jorhat district andat Tezpur in Sonitpur district, ..
28 dead, many more bodies seen inside sunken Thai tourist boat
Thai rescuers pulled 28 bodies from waters off the coast of the holiday island of Phuket today after a tourist boat went down in heavy seas with dozens of Chinese passengers on board. The dead were found drifting face down in the water, still wearing life jackets, several kilometres (miles) from where the Phoenix sank after being hit by five-metre (15-foot) high waves in a storm last evening. "Twenty-six bodies have been found and brought to here (Chalong pier). At least two (more) bodies will be transferred to this port soon," Archayon Kraithong, deputy commissioner of Thailand's Tourist police, told AFP. "The mission will go on," he added. In a grisly development, divers reported seeing "over 10 bodies" floating inside the hull of the submerged boat, according to Thai navy Rear Admiral Charoenphon Khumrasee, who said they would try to retrieve them later today. One survivor, a Chinese woman, was rushed to hospital in Phuket, according to an AFP reporter at the scene, after she was ..
24 killed in Mexico fireworks depot blast
The death toll in a series of explosions at a fireworks depot in Mexico has risen to 24 with more than 40 people injured, authorities said.
Nagpur schools to remain closed tomorrow after rainfall forecast
All schools up to Class 12 here will remain closed on Saturday in view of the heavy downpour forecast for the next 48 hours.Nagpur district collector has issued a circular to all schools in this regard, directing them to remain closed.Maharashtra has witnessed heavy rainfall in the recent past, which has disrupted routine life in the state.Mumbai has witnessed severe water-logging over the past few weeks due to heavy downpour.The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had earlier issued a warning stating that the region will be facing heavy rainfall for a few days.The downpour has also hampered railway and flight schedules in Mumbai.
Over 1,200 stranded Indian Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims evacuated from Nepal's Simikot
Over 1,200 Indian pilgrims were moved to safety from Nepal's mountainous Simikot region today, the Indian embassy here said, as efforts continued to evacuate those stranded in Hilsa while returning from the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage in Tibet amidst inclement weather. Those rescued from Simikot have been moved to Nepalgunj and Surkhet, the two towns close to the Indian border and having better health care and infrastructure facilities. "As on today, with concerted efforts, a total of 1,225 stranded pilgrims were airlifted from Simikot to Nepalgunj and Surkhet. For pilgrims airlifted to Surkhet, the embassy also put in bus service to ferry pilgrims to Nepalgunj," the Indian mission here said in a statement. "The embassy also worked with tour operators to airlift around 675 stranded pilgrims at Hilsa to Simikot for onward evacuation to Nepalgunj and Surkhet," it said. During the evacuation process, 74 commercial flights were operated and the embassy additionally pressed in private ...
Nepal: Over 300 Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims evacuated
A total of 342 stranded Kailash Mansarovar Yatra pilgrims were evacuated by engaging 21 flights and two private helicopters from Simikot to Nepalgunj and Surkhet on Friday.In response to the humanitarian situation arising out of more than 1,500 Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims stranded in Hilsa and Simikot, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu swiftly mounted rescue operations since July 2 to help facilitate the evacuation of the stranded pilgrims to safer locations in Nepal.As part of the rescue operations, the Indian embassy deployed and dispatched its officials and representatives, with medicines in Hilsa, Simikot, Nepalganj, and Surkhet to facilitate possible assistance, including medical check-ups of elderly and ailing pilgrims.An emergency control room, with contact numbers of embassy officials, has also been functioning 24X7 since July 2 to cater the need of the stranded pilgrims and their family members' queries. It is equipped with eight-member multilingual personnel ...
3 killed, 4 injured as car collides head-on with van
Three people were killed and four others critically injured after their car collided head-on with a van on the Lucknow-Bahraich road this morning, police said. The accident took place near Sant Pathik school which comes under the jurisdiction of Fakarpur police station. Sajjad (25) and his brother Karim (27) died on the spot, SP Sabharaj Singh said. The victims were on their way to Lucknow. The injured were rushed to a district hospital, where Sandhis (22) succumbed to injuries, the SP said.
11 people killed in Pak road accident
A speeding passenger bus crashed into a van and a car in Pakistan's Sindh province, killing at least 11 people, including women and children, and injuring several others, police said today. The three-vehicle crash took place on Daur road near Nawabshah district, police said. Rescuers attended to the victims, including women and children, who were immediately taken to Peoples Medical College in Nawabshah, Geo News reported. At least 11 passengers were killed and several others sustained injuries, it said. Road accidents are common in Pakistan. Most of them occur due to bad roads, old and poorly maintained vehicles and reckless driving. Earlier in May, two people were killed when a speeding car overturned in Nawabshah. In March, three people were killed and as many others severely injured when a passenger van collided with a speeding car on the Qazi Ahmed Road in the Nawabshah district.
Sidhu bats for flood control measures
With the onset of monsoon season, Punjab Local Government Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu today directed officials to appoint nodal officers and establish flood control rooms at every urban local body (ULB) that would be operational 24x7. In his order to the commissioners of the municipal corporations and its regional deputy directors, the minister emphasised that all the roads as well as storm water drains must be thoroughly cleaned with requisite equipment. He directed that the ULB staff must be fully prepared to meet any kind of contingency arising in view of the monsoon season. Warning against any laxity, Sidhu said negligence in handling flood control measures would be severely dealt with. Director, local government department, Karnesh Sharma said that any complaint and information concerning flood situation can be given on the toll free number which is already in operation in Chandigarh.
Amarnath Yatra resumes from Pahalgam
The annual Amarnath Yatra resumed on Friday from Pahalgam in the Kashmir Valley while it remains suspended for the third day from Baltal.