Three passengers were killed while six others injured when the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus hit a roadside tamarind tree in Kuppanur on the Harur Main Road here on Tuesday.
The incident occurred when the Tirupur-bound bus from Kadathur was nearing Kuppanur and the driver M. Gunasekaran (46) of Rasipuram lost control of the vehicle and hit the tree.
The deceased were identified as C. Chamraj (22) of Kadathur, R. Vijayalakshmi (45) of Kurinjipadi and S. Mayil (55) of Pappireddipatti. The injured were undergoing treatment at the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital in Salem.
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The police said that the width of the two-lane road was not increased in lieu of the number of vehicles resulting in frequent accidents. Also, to avoid paying fee at toll gates, vehicles take the road to reach Tirupattur and to Chennai. Veeranam police have registered a case.
Bus hits tanker lorry
Ten passengers of a private bus were injured when the over-speeding private bus hit a tanker lorry and came to halt by hitting the compound wall of a private dairy farm on the Salem – Ulundurpet National Highway here on Tuesday.
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The incident took place around 9.45 a.m. when the Attur – Salem bus with over 65 passengers was on the service road to reach Karipatti. In the meantime, a water- tanker lorry on the National Highway turned left to enter the private dairy farm.
The bus driver failed to slow down and as a result both vehicles veered off the road and came to a halt before hitting the compound wall of the company.
Ten passengers, mostly women sitting in the front seats suffered injuries and were admitted to Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital.
Passengers in the bus attributed reckless driving as the cause of the accident.
They further added that the whole incident could have been avoided if the driver had slowed down the bus and allowed the lorry to pass on. The front portion of the bus was completely damaged and was taken to the Karipatti police station.