2 dead, 15 still stranded mid-air in Jharkhand's Trikut Hills Ropeway mishap

As many as 32 people were rescued after an accident at the Tirkut Ropeway service in Jharkhand's Deoghar on Monday while 15 people continue to be stranded mid-air in cable cars as rescue operations done jointly by the Indian Air Force, Army, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the district personal stopped due to visibility issues after dusk, officials said.

While one woman succumbed to her injuries in hospital early this morning, the death toll in the ropeway mishap at the tourist spot atop Trikoot hills on Sunday rose to two as another man died this evening while being airlifted, officials said.

The Indian Air Force has so far rescued 32 people trapped in cable cars that collided on the Trikoot ropeway on Sunday, leaving 48 stuck inside.

Deoghar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Manjunath Bhajantri said, "The identification of the deceased has not been done yet. The IAF has so far rescued 32 people while 15 people are still trapped in three trolleys. The IAF will resume the rescue operation in the early morning tomorrow. "

Jharkhand Minister Hafizul Hasan expressed grief over the incident and said, "Our priority is to save lives. NDRF, Air Force and Indian Army are performing rescue operations. Lack of maintenance could be the reason for the accident. An investigation team will be formed to investigate the case thoroughly."

Indo-Tibetan Border Police PRO Vivek Pandey said that personnel of the rescue team was trying to supply food to people stranded in the trolleys.

Notably, some cable cars collided on a ropeway at Trikoot hills close to Baba Baidyanath Temple. The IAF received the request for the rescue of approximately 40 tourists stuck in the Ropeway Service. Acting on the request, the IAF deployed one Mi-17 and one Mi-17 V5 helicopter early in the morning on Monday for the rescue.

( With inputs from ANI )