8 killed, 24 injured as bus plunges into river in TN

Thanjavur, Dec 27 (UNI) Eight people, including three women were killed and 24 injured, some of them seriously, when a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus plunged into a river, on the Pattukottai-Muthupettai road near here early today.

Thanjavur District Collector C Vijayaraj Kumar told UNI that the bus was on its way to Thondi in Ramanathapuram District from Nagapattinam. It hit the parapet wall of a bridge at Anaikkadu before plunging into the stream.

The exact reason for the gruesome tragedy, which occurred at 0450 hrs, when all the passengers were asleep, was immediately not known.

There was not much water flowing in the forest stream 'Nasuvini,' otherwise the toll would have been higher, he said.

The deceased were identified as K Ramachandran (50), Mrs Rengammal (60), Jayabal (50), Mrs V Srirangam (52), N Chellaiyan (61), M Karuppaiyan (46), N Pavunammal (40) and the bus conductor Pakkirisamy (35).

The Collector and top police officials rushed to the spot as soon as they heard about the mishap.

All the injured were rushed to the government hospital at Pattukkottai and the Government Medical College hospital at Thanjavur, where the condition of three of them was stated to be critical, Mr Kumar said.

UNI GSM ROY YA DB1254