Sahebganj: In Jharkhand Sahebganj district, a fire tender fell into the river Ganges during refilling of vehicle’s tank on Saturday leading to the death of one fire personnel. According to a senior official, the fire tender rolled down into the river Ganges during refilling in Sahebganj. During the incident, one of the fire department personnel drowned in the river. 

Sub-Divisional Officer (Rajmahal) Kapil Kumar said that after dousing a fire in the Manglahat area of the district, the driver of the fire-brigade vehicle along with a staff wanted to refill the vehicle from Pheri ghat of the river this morning. It was during this time that the driver put the vehicle in reverse gear to park the vehicle on the bank to refill it. 

Suddenly the vehicle rolled down and fell into the river, the SDO said.

The driver, however, managed to swim to safety but the employee drowned in the water along with the vehicle.

The victim was identified as Arun Kumar, a resident of the Palamu district. Local divers were pressed into service and the vehicle was pulled out with the help of a crane, the SDO told PTI.

Brake failure was suspected to be the reason but further investigation was underway, he added. 

A case has been registered in the matter and a probe has been initiated.