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Journalism of Courage
In a chilling incident, a bulldozer clearing a debris-blocked road lost control and plunged over 300 metres into a gorge in Himachal Pradesh’s Shimla. The viral video, recorded by onlookers, shows the machine tumbling down the hillside and smashing through the gorge on its way down.
According to a report in NDTV, several vehicles had been stuck alongside the road as debris blocked the road after several landslides. The bulldozer operator was deployed to clear the road by removing the mud and rocks. However, the machine slipped and deviated from the edge, plummeting into the deep gorge.
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The incident comes amid a range of destruction across Himachal Pradesh due to heavy rains. Several areas saw flash floods and landslides, killing at least 179 people, the State Disaster Management Authority stated.
Early in July, at least 43 people lost their lives and 37 remain missing in Himachal Pradesh, following a series of cloudbursts and flash floods triggered by intense monsoon rainfall, news agency PTI reported. The monsoon arrived in the state on June 20, triggering widespread destruction with damages estimated at Rs 5,000 crore so far, the report said.
On July 29, a major flash flood struck the area above the Public Works Department Division Office and the Superintendent Engineer’s Office in Dharampur, crushing several vehicles. People trapped beneath the debris were rescued by breaking windows and escaping from the buildings.
National Highway 154 on the Mandi–Jogindernagar route was blocked near the Lawandi Bridge due to a landslide, and the National Highways Authority of India has been alerted. In addition, National Highway 21 along the Mandi–Kullu route was also closed at multiple locations, including 4 Mile, 9 Mile (near Pandoh), and Dwara (near Aut), completely disrupting the traffic.
