8 dead in separate bus accidents at Talapady and Belagavi, 16 injured

MANGALURU, BELAGAVI: At least eight people, including a child, died and about 17 people injured in separate accidents involving buses on Thursday.

Six people, including a child, died while seven were injured when a KSRTC bus, hurtling in reverse, crushed them near the Thalapady bus stand on Thursday afternoon close to the Karnataka-Kerala border. The bus driver apparently lost control after the brakes failed.

Those dead and who sustained injuries include three women and a child. An aged couple standing by the roadside holding an umbrella were among the victims. In CCTV footage, the woman can be seen standing with the support of a walker and the male pulls her aside after seeing the bus hurtling towards them, but they were crushed between the bus and a parked autorickshaw.

Some of the victims were also seated in the autorickshaw which was parked near the bus stand. The autorickshaw was completely crushed due to the impact. The injured were shifted to a hospital for treatment.

In another accident on the highway near Badekollamath close to Hirebagewadi in Belagavi taluk, two people died while nine were injured after a private bus plying between Hubballi and Pune overturned on Thursday morning. The bus rolled off the highway on to the service road.

Police and locals rescuing the injured bus passengers.

The deceased included a man and a woman, but their identities had not been established. There were 12 passengers in the bus at the time of the accident. On receiving information, the Hirebagewadi police rushed to the spot and rescued nine of the passengers.

The injured were shifted to the Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences (BIMS). It is said that it is said that rash and negligent driving led to the accident. The Hirebagewadi police have registered a case in this connection.