Trailer truck plunges into 20-ft gorge in Hazaribag’s Danua Valley, driver injured

Hazaribag: The driver of a trailer truck sustained serous injuries when the vehicle bound for Uttar Pradesh from Jharkhand plunged nearly 20ft into a deep gorge along NH-19 in the accident-prone Danua Valley in Hazaribag on Thursday.The vehicle lost control on a downhill stretch, allegedly due to overspeeding, before veering off the road. The front cabin of the vehicle was mangled under the impact, trapping the driver inside.Megh Raj (36), a resident of Kasganj district in Uttar Pradesh, was rescued by Chauparan police, NHAI’s 1033 emergency response team, ambulance personnel, and locals. Rescuers took nearly two hours to reach the site by clearing the thick vegetation on the steep terrain with an earthmover.

The crushed cabin was cut and the driver extricated before being taken to the Chauparan community health centre, which referred him to Hazaribag Sadar Hospital.Officer-in-charge of the Chauparan police station Pankaj Kumar said, “The exact cause of the accident was being probed. Prima facie, the trailer lost control and plunged into the gorge. The actual reason will be ascertained after a detailed investigation.Accidents are frequent in Danua Valley due to its sharp curves, steep gradients and high-speed movement of heavy vehicles. Often dubbed a “valley of death,” the stretch has seen repeated mishaps.