Driver loses control of school bus, pedestrian dies

Four schoolchildren, attendant and two others injured

Four children and an attendant aboard a school bus sustained minor injuries after the driver collided with a scooter and a BMTC bus before veering onto the pavement crushing a pedestrian to death.

The accident occurred at Dubasipalya Junction in Kengeri on Wednesday.

The accident could have been worse, said the police, had there been more pedestrians on the road and had it not been for some quick thinking by the BMTC bus driver.

Witnesses told the police that the driver of the school bus lost control while taking a U-turn at the junction. As the bus moved towards the pavement, it collided with a scooter and a BMTC bus.

Bigger mishap averted

“The BMTC bus driver’s presence of mind helped avert a bigger mishap. When he realised that the school bus would topple, instead of veering away, he braced for a head-on collision to slow down the school bus and save the children,” said the police.

The wind shield of the BMTC bus was shattered in the collusion, but the passengers on board were not injured.

Passers-by helped rescue the children from the bus after forcing open the front door.

The four children (aged between six and 13), the attendant Nagamma, and the two men on the scooter — Saikumar and Vismay — sustained injuries. The children were taken to hospital and were discharged later in the day.

The deceased is Dildar, a construction labourer from Patna in Bihar.

The driver of the school bus, Shivakumar, 40, sustained minor injuries. He has been arrested by the Kengeri police on the charge of dangerous driving.