Bus plunges into jungle stream, 7 killed

Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, Dec 27 (UNI) Seven people, including two women were killed and more than 20 injured, some of them seriously, when a State Transport Corporation bus plunged into a river after hitting the parapet wall of a bridge at Anaikkadu on the Pattukottai-Muthupettai road in this district early today.

District Collector C Vijayaraj Kumar told 'UNI' that the bus was on its way to Thondi in Ramanathapuram district from Nagapattinam.

The exact reason for the mishap, which occurred at 0450 hrs when the passengers were asleep was not immediately known. Fortunately, the flow of water in the jungle river 'Nasuvini'' was not much, otherwise the toll would have been more, he added.

Mr Vijayaraj Kumar said on hearing about the mishap, he and senior police officials rushed to the spot and arranged for immediate rescue operations.

The injured were rushed to the Government hospital at Pattukottai and the Government Medical College Hospital at Thanjavur, where the condition of some of them were stated to be critical.

UNI GSM YA DB1030