3 killed, several injured as bus falls into ditch

 

 

 

IN a tragic road accident, three persons including a boy lost their lives and several others were injured when a bus carrying a marriage party plunged into a ditch at Kanthi Ghat in the district on Thursday afternoon. The incident occurred under the limits of Chando police station triggered panic among villagers and passers-by. The marriage party, consisting of over 50 villagers from Belkona in Shankargarh, was on its way to Bargarh in Jharkhand for the wedding of Sunil, son of Gunjan Rat, when the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a turn at Kanthi Ghat. The bus veered off the road, toppled into a ditch and landed on a lower road, leaving behind a trail of injuries and destruction. Two of the passengers, Mahanti (27), wife of Hemant, and Mandur (18), son of Sitaram, died on the spot after being trapped beneath the vehicle.

 

Their bodies were recovered after police used a JCB machine to lift the bus. Another passenger, 12-year-old Mamesh Bada from Gopalpur, died while being shifted to the district hospital in Balrampur. Soon after the accident, a team from Chando police station reached the site and, with help from local villagers, rushed the injured to the Primary Health Centre in Chando. Several of them sustained serious injuries and were later referred to the Medical College in Ambikapur for further treatment. In the meantime, a team of Balrampur district administration officials along with medical officers visited the site and coordinated relief efforts. Health personnel remained engaged late into the evening providing medical aid.