On Thursday morning, June 26, 2025, tragedy struck in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district when a tempo traveller carrying tourists veered off the Rishikesh–Badrinath highway and plummeted into a deep gorge in the Alaknanda River valley. According to The Hindu, several passengers are feared dead, though officials have not yet released a definitive death toll.

State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams, along with local rescuers and divers, launched a high-altitude rescue operation amid rugged terrain and swift river currents. One body has already been recovered, and teams continue to search for survivors and victims among the wreckage .

Witnesses reported that the tempo may have skidded at a sharp turn, causing it to fall hundreds of feet down the gorge. Rescue personnel are working urgently to reach the site before sunset, battling unstable slopes and deep waters. Authorities are coordinating medical support for the injured and preparing equipment for night‑time recovery efforts. A formal investigation into the cause is underway.