Page 953 - Disaster Accident

Fire on INS Shivalik, no damage reported

A fire broke onboard Indian Navy's stealth frigate INS Shivalik, but there was no major damage or any casualty, Navy officials said.

13-year-old boy dies in rope swing accident

A 13-year-old boy died in a freak accident while playing on a rope swing at his home in Jalgaon district, a police official said. Pavan Kailas Mali got choked to death when the swing rope got entangled around his neck at his home this morning in Paroda, around 400km from here in the North Maharashtra district, he said. The boy's parents noticed him lying motionless on the swing with the rope entrapped around his neck. They took him to a hospital where Mali was declared dead, the official said. An accidental death report (ADR) has been registered in connection with the incident, he added.

Three killed in two road accidents in Kota

At least three people have died in two separate road accidents here, police said today. A heavily loaded truck, headed for Baran from Kota, overturned last night on the highway near the Chambal Fertilizers plant, about two kilometres from the Simliya toll plaza, after it swerved to avoid hitting some cows, ASI Sitaram Saini said. The driver and the cleaner of the truck, identified as Durgesh Rathore (25) and Vishnu Mali (24), respectively, both residents of Bhilwara district, were killed on the spot while a third person, identified as Deepak Rathore (20), sustained minor injuries, he said. The bodies were handed over to the family members today after postmortem at Maharao Bheem Singh (MBS) hospital, Kota, and a case was lodged under sections of the Motor Vehicle Act, the ASI said. Mohan Lal Gujjar (28), a resident of Premnagar-II in Kota city, was killed this morning after a speeding car ploughed into his motorbike near the Tathed overbridge here, police said. Gujjar ...

'UP 100' averted 858 suicides in 2017

The ambitious Uttar Pradesh Police emergency system, UP 100, foiled 858 suicide attempts last year and saved 134 accident victims daily, officials said on Wednesday.

Victim search expands as California storm, mudslides kill 13

A storm that slammed a California coastal community is over. The search for its victims is not. Authorities in Santa Barbara County were still trying to reach new areas and dig into the destruction to find dead, injured or trapped people after a powerful mud flow swept away dozens of homes. At least 13 people were confirmed dead yesterday, at least 25 were injured and at least 50 had to be rescued by helicopters. Those numbers could increase when the search is deepened and expanded Wednesday, with a major search-and-rescue team arriving from nearby Los Angeles County and help from the Coast Guard and National Guard along with law enforcement. They'll focus first on finding survivors. "Right now our assets are focused on determining if anyone is still alive in any of those structures that have been damaged," Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said. The sheriff said "at least several dozen homes that have been either destroyed or severely damaged, and likely many ...

UP 100 averted 858 suicides in 2017, saved 134 accident victims a day

The ambitious Uttar Pradesh Police emergency system, UP 100, saved 858 lives by timely intervention in suicide attempts across the state in the past one year, officials said on Wednesday, adding that 134 people were saved daily in road accidents.

China suspends firefighting efforts after tanker explosion

Chinese officials say an explosion has rocked a stricken oil tanker off the coast of Shanghai, forcing maritime authorities to suspend firefighting and rescue efforts. China's ministry of transport said rescue vessels withdrew to a safe distance after the explosion Wednesday on the Sanchi's bow, the latest setback in the multinational effort to extinguish the burning wreck. The Sanchi was carrying nearly 1 million barrels of ultra-light oil when it collided Saturday evening with a freighter 257 kilometers off the coast and caught fire. Intense flames, bad weather and poor visibility have hampered rescue efforts. Rescuers on Tuesday found a body believed to be a sailor from the Iranian-operated tanker, while a search continued for 31 other missing crew members.

13 dead in southern California

At least 13 people have been dead and several injured amid mudslides and heavy rain, which triggered flooding, in southern California.Death toll is likely to rise, reported CNN, citing Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown, as saying."It looked like a World War I battlefield," Brown added, "While we hope it will not, we expect that this number will increase as we continue to look for people who are still missing and unaccounted for."At least two dozen people were unaccounted for and authorities have rescued at least 50 people in the Montecito area, the report said.Rescues have been carried out throughout the day in Montecito, an enclave which houses celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres and several other celebrities.Oprah Winfrey has a property in Montecito that is reportedly worth nearly $90m.According to the National Weather Service more than 5.5 inches of rain had fallen in parts of Ventura County over two days.

Patna-Mokama Express fire doused

The massive fire that broke out in four coaches of Patna-Mokama passenger express has been doused.The train was stationed at the Mokama railway station when the fire erupted.The incident occurred in the wee hours of Wednesday, in which one of the coaches went up in flames.Soon, the fire spread and engulfed three other bogies.However, no casualties were reported.During this whole incident, there was no disruption to train operations.The Railways has ordered an inquiry to ascertain the cause of the fire.

Maharashtra FDA notice to McDonald's for poor quality at Mumbai outlet

HardCastle Restaurants, which runs the McDonald's franchise in the Southern and Western states said they are looking into the matter seriously

Women outlive men even during crisis: study

Women not only outlive men in normal times, but also during the worst of circumstances, such as famines and epidemics, according to a study which challenges the notion that females are the weaker sex. This advantage in times of crisis may be largely due to biological factors such as genetics or hormones, researchers said. Most of the life expectancy gender gap was due to a female survival advantage in infancy rather than adulthood, they said. In times of adversity, newborn girls are more likely to survive, the researchers found. The fact that women have an edge in infancy, when behavioural differences between the sexes are minimal, supports the idea that explanation is at least partly biological, they said. Led by researchers at the University of Southern Denmark and Duke University in the US, the team analysed mortality data going back roughly 250 years for people whose lives were cut short by famine, disease or other misfortunes. The data spanned seven populations in ..

4 killed in separate road accidents in Rajasthan

Four persons, including a woman, were killed and 11 others injured today in two separate road accidents in Rajasthan's Barmer and Hanumangarh districts. In the first incident, a private bus hit the rear of a truck in Dhorimanna area, killing Prakash Rawal (45) and Alka Ben (35), who were going on a vacation, with other passengers in the bus, to Jaisalmer, investigating officer Rupa Ram said. The bodies have been kept in a mortuary for post mortem. "A case has been lodged against the bus driver," Ram said. The other accident occurred in Goluwala police station area when a state transport bus collided head-on with a trailer, killing bus conductor Raj Kumar (28) and the trailer's cleaner Gulab Singh (35). Eight passengers in the bus were injured, police said. "Those injured are undergoing treatment at a government hospital in Sriganganagar and the bodies are at a mortuary of a local hospital," a police official said. No case has been registered yet, he said.

Why women live longer than men

Women are biologically more stronger than men and hence tend to outlive their male counterparts, finds a study challenging the per-conceived notion that the female sex is weaker.

Marathwada stares at water scarcity due to low crop yield

The Marathwada region of Maharashtra, a perennially drought-plagued area, is once again staring at a severe water scarcity. Over 41 per cent of the villages in this region of central Maharashtra have reported 'paisewari' (average yield) below 50 paise. This will force the government to mull augmenting foodgrain and water supply in the region. A data compiled by the revenue department revealed that more than 3,500 villages in Marathwada have reported paisewari less than 50 paise. This means the scarcity of basic resources such as foodgrain production and water is less by 50 per cent of its actual capacity. The seasonal paisewari is an official measure of the crop yield. As a routine practice, revenue officials survey villages to assess the post-monsoon situation and prepare a report. The database helps the state administration to initiate measures such as tanker-based water supply, fodder camps for cattle and creation of temporary jobs for rural population to tide over ..

Another swine flu alert in Rajasthan

The Rajasthan government on Wednesday issued a swine flu alert after the disease claimed 12 lives in the state since January 1.

60 shops gutted in Raigad's fire

Over 60 shops were gutted after a massive fire broke at a vegetable market here in the wee hours of Wednesday.The fire broke out in city's Sanjay Complex and has been doused as of now after 10 fire tenders were pressed into service to overcome the blaze, according to a fire-fighting team.No casualties have been reported so far.The reason behind fire has not been ascertained yet.

1,749 people died in 10,160 accidents in J&K in 2016, 17: CM

A total of 1,749 persons lost their lives in around 10,000 road accidents in Jammu and Kashmir in past two years, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti informed the state assembly today. In a written reply to a question by NC MLA Mubarak Gul, she said 958 persons were killed in 5,501 number of accidents in the state in 2016. As many as 791 persons were killed in 4,659 accidents till October, 2017, the chief minister added.

40 more die in UP cold wave

Despite being sunny, a cold wave continued in most parts of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday. More than 40 persons were reported dead in the state in the last 24 hours, taking the toll to 143 so far.

Train catches fire in Bihar, 4 coaches gutted

Four coaches of a passenger train were gutted in a fire in Bihar's Mokama railway yard on Wednesday, an official said. No one was injured in the incident.

Stationary train catches fire in Bihar, no casualties

Four bogies of a stationary train were gutted in a fire in Mokama, about 100 kilometres from here. There were no casualties or injuries to anyone. The empty rake of Danapur-Mokama MEMU train had caught fire shortly after midnight. Four coaches were affected in the fire as the remaining 12 bogies were separated by the railway staff, Chief Public Relations Officer of the East Central Railway (ECR) Rajesh Kumar said. During the entire operation, there was no disruption in train operations, Kumar said. An inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the fire, he said. Station staff, along with RPF and GRP personnel, made efforts to keep the fire under control until fire brigade arrived from Barh, about 30 km away, and the flames were extinguished by 3.30 AM, he said. The train had reached Mokama station around 10.20 PM yesterday. The CPRO said, "Prima facie, the fire appears to be result of a miscreant's activity. However, an inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the ..