Five persons, including the driver and helper of a private luxury sleeper bus, lost their lives after the vehicle rammed into a stationary truck near Darchura village under Simga police station limits in Balodabazar-Bhatapara district early Monday morning. The Royal Travels bus, carrying 22 passengers from Ambikapur to Raipur, collided with the rear of a broken-down truck around 5.30 am on the Raipur-Bilaspur National Highway (NH-130), approximately 45 kilometres from Raipur. The deceased were identified as driver Bhagirathi Yadav (37), a Jashpur resident; helper Pawan Dewangan (24), from Balrampur; and passenger Samim Mohammed (39), also from Balrampur.

 

All three died at the accident site. The death toll subsequently increased to five after two critically injured passengers, Atul Kumar (33), from Balrampur, and Sunder Lal (49), from Raigarh, succumbed while being transported for or receiving advanced medical treatment. According to the Chief Medical Officer’s initial assessment, 19 casualties were brought for medical attention, comprising three deceased and 16 injured persons. Seven injured passengers were referred to Raipur for specialised treatment. The injured were taken to medical facilities, including All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Raipur, and Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Memorial Hospital (BRAMH), Raipur.

 

The 14 surviving injured were identified as Vasudev Rao (31), Rajendra Thakur (30), Savita Kanvet (21), Budhram Kanvet (25), Nirmala Yadav (52), Duleshwar Yadav (54), Suman Dixit (40), Aman Gupta (22), Anurag Ved (28), Dilip Tiwari (30), Satish Bhagat (35), Anil Yadav (22), Kamaldas Gupta (59) and Punam Toppo (50). Police, National Highways Authority of India personnel and local villagers launched rescue operations, deploying heavy equipment and gas cutters to extricate passengers trapped inside the severely mangled bus.

 

One victim reportedly suffered a traumatic lower-limb amputation. Preliminary police assessments indicated that the truck had developed a mechanical fault and was parked along the highway with warning stoppers and traffic cones. Investigators suspect the bus driver, reportedly travelling at considerable speed, failed to notice the stationary vehicle in the early morning light. Sub-Divisional Officer of Police Mayank Ran Singh supervised the preliminary investigation. Police are examining the circumstances surrounding the collision, including vehicle speed, visibility and roadside safety arrangements. Medical authorities are continuing treatment and assessment of the surviving injured passengers.