Two killed, 19 injured as speeding bus goes over under-construction bridge, falls, near Srivilliputtur

Tragic road accident near Srivilliputtur leaves two dead and 19 injured, driver loses control on under-construction bridge.

Two passengers were killed and 19 others injured in a road accident, when a speeding bus proceeding from Tenkasi to Coimbatore fell onto its side near Srivilliputtur, late on Sunday (April 7, 2024) night. 

The deceased were identified as K. Karthik (20) of Idaikkal and M. Muthuselvi (47) of Valparai. Seven passengers, who had sustained serious injuries, including V. Maheswari (37) of Gobichettipalayam, whose hand was reportedly severed, were referred to Madurai for treatment. 

The police said that the driver of the bus, Sathya Venkatesh of Sevalpatti, failed to notice that bridge work was taking place on the road near Krishnankoil. Instead of taking the temporary road to the left of the under-construction bridge, he drove the bus straight on to the bridge.  Immediately upong realising what had happened, he attempted to swerve the speeding bus to the left, but lost control of the vehicle. The bus fell between the bridge and the temporary road.

Local residents rushed to the rescue of the injured passengers and pulled them out through the windows. The bus had sleeper berths, with seats underneath. The police and fire and rescue service personnel also rushed to the spot. Virudhunagar Superintendent of Police, K. Feroze Khan Abdullah oversaw the rescue operation. 

Construction work is underway on the Tirumangalam-Sengottai Highway by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to four-lane this section. 

Though the driver had been regularly driving on this road, he lost control of the speeding vehicle this time, Srivilliputtur Deputy Superintendent of Police, C. Muhesh Jayakumar said. 

Traffic on the highway was blocked for nearly 30 minutes due to the accident.