Six dead as vehicle falls into ditch in J&K’s Poonch

Six people, including two women, were killed, and three others injured, when a vehicle veered off the road and fell into a ditch in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday (August 26, 2026), officials said.

The vehicle, a Maruti Eeco, was heading for Seri Chouhana village when its driver lost control and the vehicle fell into a roadside ditch around 5.30 p.m., resulting in the death of the six persons. The accident took place at Seri Chouhana village in Sheldhar area of Surankote.

The condition of one of the injured, a child, was stated to be critical, the officials said.

Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed their anguish over the tragic accident, and directed the district administration to provide immediate assistance to those affected.

"An unfortunate accident occurred this evening, resulting in on-the-spot death of six persons and injuries to three others," Poonch Deputy Commissioner Ashok Kumar Sharma told PTI. A rescue operation was launched immediately and the injured were rushed to hospital, he said.

The deceased were identified as Mohd Shafiq (32), Nazakat Hussain (34), Sheraz Ahmed (30), Mohd Fareed (21), Musarat Naz (19), and Zulfat Bi (25).

Five-year-old Irshan Ahmed along with Mohd Amin (30) and Tahir Ahmed (25) were injured in the accident and were rushed to the district hospital Poonch, the officials said, adding the critically injured child was referred to Government Medical College hospital for specialised treatment.