Lahaul-Spiti/Mandi, June 17(UNI) Two persons died and 42 others sustained injuries in two separate road accidents in the last 24 hours in Himachal Pradesh's tribal district of Lahaul-Spiti and in Mandi, officials said on Tuesday.

Sources said the accidents are attributed to bad weather and slippery mountainous roads. Heavy rains and poor visibility have made several passages dangerous for driving, they said.

Officials said quick response by the local police, disaster teams, and villagers played a crucial role in averting greater loss of life.

On Monday evening, a tempo traveler carrying 24 tourists fell into a gorge near Gramphu on the Koksar-Rohtang road in Lahaul-Spiti district. The vehicle, reportedly coming from Haryana, carried tourists from Delhi, Gujarat, and Haryana.

Superintendent of Police Lahaul-Spiti Ilma Afroz confirmed the death of one man and one woman in the accident. "The vehicle veered off the road and fell into a deep gorge around 5 pm. With the help of local people, we rescued all injured passengers and shifted them to a Manali hospital," she said.

Among the injured passengers were two 6-year-old twins who received head injuries. Six passengers were later referred to Mission Hospital Manali and Kullu for further treatment. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

In another incident on Tuesday morning, a private bus overturned on the Kalkhar-Patrighat road in Mandi district amid heavy rain. The bus was on its way from Kuthehra to Mandi and overturned near Patdighat around 8am.

There were 25 passengers onboard. More than 20 of them sustained injuries. Passengers with minor injuries managed to walk to safety.

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