Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (SP)

Udupi, Feb 18: After an express bus moving to Mangalore from Udupi tripped and fell on its side near Poondad Road in Tenka Yermal near Padubidri on Thursday February 17, five persons including the driver of the bus were injured. All of them were admitted into a private hospital in Padubdiri.

Eyewitnesses said that the bus moved erratically on the wooden logs scattered on the roadside because of the ongoing highway widening work, before coming to a halt with a thud on its side, after its spring plate got detached.  People say that the wooden logs, carelessly abandoned by contractors who cut down the trees standing on the road sides, have been posing major problems for the vehicles moving on the national highway. These logs have also been hindering vehicular movement of many villagers, as they block their path to the highway.

The injured have been identified as Susheelabai (84) from Padebettu, Salim (29) from Bantwal, Sonik (24), from Suratkal, and Mohan Rao (51) from Yermal village. Driver of the bus, Razack (40), from Kabaka in Bantwal taluk, also suffered injuries. Negligence of the driver too seems to have contributed to the gravity of the accident.