Beed, Oct 26 (IANS): At least nine persons, including a doctor, were killed and more than 25 others injured in two separate accidents involving a bus and a mini ambulance in Ambhora and Ashti villages in a matter of eight hours, police officials said here on Thursday.

In the first incident, at least four persons travelling in an ambulance were killed when it hit a truck taking a turn from the rear, around 10 pm on Wednesday, said Assistant Police Inspector Mahadeo Dhakne.

The second incident took place around 5 a.m. on Thursday when a passenger bus from Mumbai to Beed skidded and overturned on a sharp stretch of the highway near Ashti, said Police Inspector Santosh Khetmalas.

Dhakne said that the ambulance was apparently ferrying a patient when it rammed into the truck from the back side when the heavy vehicle was taking a left turn to go to Ahmednagar.

The victims include the ambulance driver Bharat S. Lokhande, 35, Manoj P. Tirpude, 34, Pappu P. Tirkunde, 33, all of whom succumbed on the spot, while a medico Dr. Rajesh B. Zinjurke, 35 died during treatment at the MacCare Hospital, Ahmednagar early today.

According to Khetmalas, a speeding bus suddenly skid and overturned on the Beed highway and slid for over a 100 metres before coming to a halt, around 5 am.

"So far five persons are killed and more than 24 persons are injured in the accident, and a few are serious. The Sagar Travels bus was proceeding from Mumbai to Beed, and the exact cause of the accident is being investigated," said Khetmalas.

Both Dhakne and Khetmalas said that the vehicles involved in the crashes - a bus, a truck and an Omni ambulance - have been towed aside from the highways where normal traffic has resumed, the families of the deceased and injured have been informed and cases have been lodged in the two accidents.