Vijayawada/Bhubaneswar, Feb 28: Today a bus on its way from Bhubaneswar to Hyderabad met with a tragic accident at Mulupadu near Vijaywada in Andhra Pradesh killing 10 persons and injuring more than 30. Eight died on the spot while two others succumbed to injuries at hospital. NDRF and police team have been engaged in rescue operation. Gas cutters were used to rescue the passengers. The injured have been admitted to a local hospital at Nandigaon near Vijaywada. Out of them 10 critical passengers were shifted to Vijayawada hospital. Although the identity of the ones dead are yet to known but its suspected that they were from Odisha. The dead includes the driver and helper of the bus who had a spot death. Also the death toll is likely to rise.
The accident happened at around 5.30 am when the bus bearing number, AP02-TC-7146, belonging to Diwakar Travels, overran a bridge divider and plunged through the gap at National Highway-5. The bus which was to cover over a 1,000 km to from Bhubaneswar to Hyderabad had made a stop in Vijayawada where a new driver took over. It’s said that the driver felt asleep and due to his negligence on duty, the accident took place. The ill-fated bus was carrying nearly 48 passengers.
Health Minister of Andhra Pradesh arrived at the spot to review the rescue operations. Deputy CM of Andhra Pradesh expressed condolences to the deceased families and ordered to hand over the bodies to their respective families. He has also ordered free treatment to the injured passengers.
