Page 995 - Disaster Accident
Three people killed in US plane crash: police
Three people died when a small plane crashed in the US state of Indiana, police said today. The single-engine Cessna went down and caught fire behind a home in a heavily-wooded area of the Midwestern state at about 9:10 pm (0210 GMT) local time on Saturday, the Indiana State Police said in a statement. The crash "claimed the lives of all three people on board" as well as a dog, it said. "A second dog survived the crash and showed up at a nearby residence. The dog was taken to a local veterinarian to be treated for injuries," the police said. They did not release the victims' identities. The plane was flying from Kansas City, Missouri, to Frederick, Maryland.
11 dead, 15 missing in Chile mudslide
A mudslide that buried much of a village in southern Chile has killed 11 people while another 15 are still missing, authorities have said. The tragedy struck a picturesque village of Villa Santa Lucia in the southern Los Lagos (Lakes) region where heavy rain triggered mudslides that swallowed up most of the homes in the village of 300. Ten families have been evacuated, Onemi added yesterday. The town was unable to vote in Sunday's presidential runoff won by conservative ex-president Sebastian Pinera. The toll surged from a previous count of eight dead and 12 injured.
Eight crew members of cargo ship rescued by Coast Guard
All eight crew members of a cargo ship, which sank off Androth island in the Lakshadweep on December 15, have been rescued by a Coast Guard ship. Coast Guard Ship 'Savitribai Phule' co-ordinated the rescue of all eight crew members of 'MSV Sumithra,' a release here said. The cargo ship, which had set sail from Beypore port in Kerala on December 15, was drifting off Androth island. On getting information from the CG district headquarters at Kavaratti,the coast guard ship headed towards the the cargo ship's indicated position and launched search and rescue operations. Sea and air coordinated searches were also undertaken with Indian Navy aircraft in the area, the release said. The cargo ship sank due to engine failure, heavy winds and huge waves 30 nautical miles off Androth before it could be located by the coast guard ship It said MT Gaschem Norsee,which was transiting from the area, picked up all the eight crew members. Savitribai Phule rendezvoused with the other ship ..
MI-8 "Pratap" helicopter of IAF phased out
The Soviet-era MI-8, the backbone of the Indian Air Force helicopter operations, was phased out today, bringing an end to its glorious service career spanning 45 years. The phasing out ceremony was held at the Air Force Station at Yelahanka in Bengaluru, where the veterans bade a touching adieu to the multi-role helicopter fleet of IAF. The Air Force had already phased out the 107 MI-8 helicopters, also known as 'Pratap' and the last chopper stopped its rotor at the Air Force Station, Yelahanka today. A grand ceremony preceded the end of the MI-8 helicopter's service. Veterans headed by Air Chief Marshall (Retd) Fali Homi Major flew the last MI-8 mission along with the other crew members. Air Marshal S R K Nair, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Training Command, IAF was the chief guest on the occasion while Air Marshal Jasjit Singh Kler, Commandant NDA, was also present. 112 Helicopter unit based at Yelahanka station is the last unit to operate this formidable platform. .
Four killed in road accidents in Amethi district
Four people were killed today in road accidents in the Piparpur, Mangauli and Gauriganj areas of Amethi district, the police said. Two persons were killed near the Bhadar Power House on the Amethi-Durgapur road after a vehicle hit their motorcycle, they said. Veer Bhagat Singh (34) and Shiv Shankar Singh (38), residents of Bhadar Manshah village, died on the spot, the police said. On the Jagdishpur-Faizabad National Highway in Mangauli, Shahrin Bano (22), a resident of Pure Gauhar village, was run over by a truck, Station House Officer, Jagdishpur, J B Pandey said. She died on the spot. In Gauriganj, a 11-year-old boy Rohit of Mahimapur village was hit by a motorcycle near the Krishna Nagar chauraha on the Amethi-Gauriganj road, SHO, Gauriganj, Dipendra Singh said He rushed to a hospital where doctors declared him dead.
2 killed, 3 injured after car mounts road divider
Two people were killed and three others injured when the car they were travelling in mounted a road divider and overturned in Rajasthan's Pali district, police said today. The accident happened late last night when the occupants of the vehicle were on their way to Jodhpur from Udaipur. Nishal Negi, 20, and Tarun Bansal, 28, died in the accident. Three others were injured, the police said. The bodies were handed over to the family members of the deceased after a postmortem examination today, they said. The people injured were stated to be stable.
Fire breaks out in shopping complex; many shops gutted
A major fire today broke out in a shopping complex in Bairagarh area here in which several shops were gutted, a civic official said. "The blaze erupted at the Sant Hirdaram Shopping Complex between 11 am to 12 pm. Several shops have been gutted. As of now, we cannot tell the number of shops destroyed in the fire," said Bhopal Municipal Corporation's Bairagarh fire station in-charge Iftekhar Ali. He said the fire was brought under control and 30 fire-tenders have been pressed into service. According to Ali the complex housed many garment shops. "It is suspected that a short-circuit led to the fire," said another civic official.
More than 30 dead in Philippines due to slow-moving storm
A slow-moving storm has left more than 30 people dead and several others missing mostly due to landslides and floods and stranded thousands of holiday travelers in the central Philippines, officials said today. Sofronio Dacillo Jr., a disaster-response officer, said 26 villagers died and 23 others were missing mostly due to landslides in different areas in the island province of Biliran, where the weather has improved after Tropical Storm Kai-Tak blew over yesterday. At least seven other people were killed in landslides and floods in four central areas due to Kai-tak, which weakened into a tropical depression but moved southwestward and picked up speed Sunday with sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour, according to officials and police. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said it was trying to confirm the reported deaths caused by the storm, which forced more than 89,000 people to flee to emergency shelters. Thousands of Christmas holiday ...
Major fire in chemical unit in Navi Mumbai
A major fire broke out in a chemical unit in Turbhe node of neighbouring Navi Mumbai today, a Fire official said. The blaze started at the unit, located in TTC area, at around 5 PM. At least six fire tenders have been rushed to the spot to douse the fire, the official said without elaborating. Further details are awaited.
Assam CM mourns death of Balikuchi road accident victims
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has mourned the death of six members of a family in a road accident at Balikuchi village on Kamarkuchi-Paikarkuchi road in Nalbari district on Saturday evening. In a message, Sonowal said he was saddened to hear the news of the fatal road accident which claimed the lives of Samo Talukdar, a resident of Sonkani village and five members of his family including his wife, three daughters and grandchild, official sources said. The chief minister also expressed his sympathies to the bereaved family and prayed for eternal peace of the departed souls. The family of Samo Talukdar was returning home when the car in which they were travelling skidded off the road and fell into a ditch.
Cyclone: TN CM holds meet on relief to be sought from Centre
Two days ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Cyclone Ochki-hit Kanyakumari district, the Tamil Nadu government today held a review meeting over the central assistance to be sought for the relief works in the region. Chief Minister K Palaniswami, who is expected to accompany Modi during the visit on December 19, chaired the meeting which resolved to press the Centre on the demand for declaring the cyclone a national disaster. Palaniswami had days ago written to the prime minister urging him to declare the cyclone a national disaster. A similar plea has also been made by neighbouring Kerala, where the southern coast bordering Kanyakumari was hit by the cyclone fury. The meeting also resolved to seek assistance from the National Disaster Relief Fund towards additional funding requirements to meet the relief works in the southern Tamil Nadu districts of Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli and Tuticorin, affected by the cyclone last month, an official release here ...
Four killed, seven hurt in Japan sex service fire
Four people were killed and seven injured today in a fire at an establishment near Tokyo offering sexual services, Japanese police said. Aerial footage on public broadcaster NHK showed grey smoke pouring from a concrete building in the city of Saitama, 25 kilometres north of Tokyo, as dozens of firefighters battled the blaze. It took about five hours to extinguish the fire. "A man who appeared to be in his 40s and two women who appeared to be in their 20s died after being sent to a hospital," a police spokesman told AFP. "We also found a body whose gender is undetermined inside the establishment," he added. The seven people were slightly injured and treated in hospital. The emergency services received calls from people inside the establishment saying they could not escape because the building was filled with smoke, according to NHK. Police are investigating what caused the fire and the identity of the people who died.
JK snowfall: Mughal road closed for 8th day
After heavy snowfall, the Mughal road remained closed for vehicular movement for the eighth consecutive day today, while one-way traffic was plying smoothly on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, traffic police department officials said. The Mughal road connects the twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri of Jammu region with south Kashmir's Shopian district. It was closed for vehicular traffic on December 10 evening as a precautionary measure owing to prediction of heavy snowfall. "The road clearance operation was not started so far and a team of officials are visiting various areas along the road tomorrow to take stock of the situation," a police official said. A decision to reopen the road for vehicular traffic after clearance operation would depend on the emerging weather conditions, he said. About four-feet of snow had accumulated on the ground at Peer Ki Gali along the road during the inclement weather between Dec 11 and 14, hampering restoration of the road ...
China conducts test flight of second prototype of passenger
A second prototype of the China's indigenously-built passenger aircraft today successfully completed its maiden test flight, media reports said. The prototype of the C919 plane took off from Shanghai's Pudong International airport this morning for the test flight. With this, the country has moved a step closer to its ambition to penetrate the global passenger jet market, estimated to be worth USD 2 trillion over the next 20 years. "The test flight lasted for around two hours during which performance of the plane's major systems and equipments like taking-off and landing, navigation and communication, speed acceleration and deceleration were tested," the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The first prototype of C919 narrow-body aircraft, which will compete with single-aisle planes of Boeing's 737 and the Airbus A320, made its maiden flight in May. Its first intercity test flight was conducted last month. With main focus on engine tests, the aircraft manufacturer, ...
26 dead in landslides after Philippine storm: officials
Landslides triggered by Tropical Storm Kai-Tak have killed 26 people and 23 more are missing in the eastern Philippines, authorities said today. The deaths were reported in the small island province of Biliran, a day after the storm pounded the east of the archipelago nation. Kai-Tak tore across the major islands of Samar and Leyte on Saturday, toppling power lines in 39 towns or cities and damaging roads and bridges, the national disaster agency said. Some 87,700 people were forced from their homes in the region. But the previous death toll had stood at just three. "There is a total of 26 people dead from landslides in four towns of Biliran. We have recovered the bodies," Sofronio Dacillo, provincial disaster risk reduction and management officer, told AFP. Gerardo Espina, governor of the island province just east of Leyte, gave the same figure for deaths in an interview on ABS-CBN television. He said 23 people were missing. The national disaster risk reduction agency ...
26 dead from landslides after Philippine storm: officials
Landslides triggered by Tropical Storm Kai-Tak have killed 26 people in the central Philippine island of Biliran, authorities said today, a day after the storm pounded the east of the archipelago nation. "There is a total of 26 people dead from landslides in four towns of Biliran. We have recovered the bodies," Sofronio Dacillo, Biliran provincial disaster risk reduction and management officer, told AFP. Gerardo Espina, governor of the island province east of the much larger island of Leyte, gave the same figure for deaths in an interview on ABS-CBN television.
10 injured as UP Roadways bus turns turtle
At least 10 people were injured when a Uttar Pradesh Roadways bus turned turtle in the district, police said today. The incident took place yesterday when the driver of an Allahabad-bound UP Roadways bus lost control over it in an attempt to save a girl coming from the opposite direction, the police said. Superintendent of Police Banda Shalini said that at least 10 people were injured in the incident and there were 60 passengers travelling on the bus. Some of the injured were undergoing treatment in Banda, while some injured passengers have been referred to Kanpur for treatment, the police said.
Family of IB inspector killed in road mishap gets Rs 47 lakh
Family members of an Intelligence Bureau inspector, who died after being hit by a Delhi Jal Board water tanker, have been awarded Rs 47 lakh compensation by a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT). MACT presiding officer Pawan Kumar Jain directed the chief executive officer of DJB and the driver of the tanker to jointly pay Rs 47,83,000 to victim the family of Kirpal Dutt Walia, who was on a motorcycle with his friend when the vehicle hit them almost a decade ago. The tribunal decided the petition in favour of Walia's mother, wife and daughter, while relying on the testimony of his friend, who was an eyewitness, and documents on record including the FIR, charge sheet, post-mortem report and mechanical inspection report. According to the petition, Walia and his friend met with the accident on January 20, 2008 when they were hit by the DJB tanker driven rashly and negligently. Due to the impact, Walia fell and died on the spot while his friend suffered injuries, it ...
Landslide in southern Chile leaves 3 dead, 15 missing
Officials in Chile say heavy rains fueled a landslide that swept over a village in the country's south, killing at least three people and leaving another 15 missing. Deputy Secretary of the Interior Madmud Aleuy says the three confirmed dead in Villa Santa Lucia in the Los Lagos region of southern Chile are two women and an unidentified tourist. Fifteen others are missing. Rains caused a river to overflow and the side of a hill to collapse yesterday, burying 20 of the 200 houses in the village located 1,272 kilometers south of the capital, Santiago. President Michel Bachelet said on her Twitter account that emergency services are working in the area "to care for those affected." Some of the injured were evacuated by helicopter to medical centers.
6 of family killed in road accident in Assam
Six members of a family were this evening killed in a road accident at Balikuchi village on Kamarkuchi-Paikarkuchi road in Assam's Nalbari district, police said. Samo Talukdar, a resident of Sonkani village, and his family members were returning home after visiting his elder daughter's house when their car skidded off the road and fell into a ditch in Balikuchi village here, they said. Talukdar, his wife Barada Talukdar, their daughter Rumi Talukdar (38) and her daughters Pragati Talukdar (10) and Pampi Talukdar (2) were killed in the accident, the police said. The bodies have been brought out from the ditch and sent for post-mortem. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary have condoled the death of the six persons.