Bantwal: Private bus rolls off minor bridge - Over 20 injured
Kishore Peraje
Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal (EP)
Bantwal, Oct 9: A private bus toppled and fell into a stream near Kudkoli at Siddakatte here Wednesday October 9, injuring over 20 people.
Speeding and reckless driving is said to be the cause for the mishap. Though no loss of life has been reported, more than twenty people were injured in the accident. The injured have been hospitalized in different private hospitals.
The bus was plying from BC Road to Moodbidri and Karkala. As it approached Kudkoli minor bridge near the slope, the driver lost control due to speeding, turned twice on the road, went skidding towards an electric pole on the right side and fell on it. It subsequently rolled off the minor bridge and fell down. The bus was completely damaged due to the impact.
The street light was uprooted. Several passengers including students going to Moodbidri college, girls going for work at cashew factory and people going to work in other places were in the bus.
The injured passengers were taken to hospitals by the auto rickshaw drivers and other local people. After first aid, they were taken to hospitals in Mangalore, Moodbidri and Bantwal by ambulance.
SI Nagaraj of Bantwal police station and team visited the place and further investigation is on.
The onlookers blamed reckless driving of the driver for the accident. Though Kudkori junction is steep, the driver drover the bus too fast and could not control it causing the accident, they said. As the bus dashed against the electric pole, the driver jumped off from the bus. Passengers' bags, lunch boxes, footwear, mobiles, keys etc were scattered in the bus. Some items also fell in the stream.
As the rain was less, the flow of water was less in the stream. This prevented a major mishap. Besides, as the bus toppled with the doors of the bus at the top, passengers were not thrown out. Though the street light was uprooted, the electricity got disconnected immediately preventing loss of life.
Some of the injured are Annalike resident Sridhar, Gladis, Haris, Jeevan Kiran etc. Though many were injured, their names were notimmediately available.