Ten persons were killed and 28 badly injured when a speeding omni bus overturned near Valliyoor in Tirunelveli district around 5.30 a.m. on Friday.
Police said the speeding Multi-Axle Volvo bus, proceeding from Karaikal to Thiruvananthapuram overturned as it was crossing Pilaakottaipaarai near Valliyoor after hitting the concrete median. Eight persons died on the spot.
Passengers were rushed to various hospitals including Kanyakumari Medical College Hospital at Aasaaripallam in Nagercoil.
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A family from Gujarat, which boarded the bus at Velankanni and was proceeding to Kanyakumari via Nagercoil, lost two of its members – a boy and a girl in their mid-twenties. Identity of the victims could not be ascertained immediately.
Even as the injured were being rescued, District Collector M. Karunakaran, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Tirunelveli Range, T.S. Anbu and Superintendent of Police V. Vikraman arrived at the spot to expedite rescue operations.
“The exhausted and sleepy bus driver, who lost control over the speeding vehicle, is the reason behind the mishap as per preliminary investigations,” Dr. Karunakaran said.
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Passengers from Kerala
Several persons mostly from Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts are feared to be among the 10 dead.
State Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala told reporters a short while ago that the government has deputed IG of Police (South) Manoj Abraham to coordinate the rescue and relief activities. He is in touch with Tirunelveli District Collector and Superintendent of Police. An official team led by the Thiruvananthapuram Additional District Magistrate has also been sent to the accident site.
The government's focus now, he said, is to provide special medical care to the injured and, if necessary, to bring them to the Thiruvananthapuram Government Medical College. A team led by the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Neyyattinkara, close to the Tamil Nadu have also left for Tirunelveli, he said.
(With inputs from C. Gouridasan Nair)