13 killed, 25 injured as lorry collides with bus

Hooghly, Aug 06 (UNI) At least 13 people were killed and 25 others injured, seven of them critically, when a truck collided head-on with a stationary bus on Durgapur Expressway under Chanditala police station in the district in the wee hours today.

Police here said the bus, carrying 42 pilgrims, had halted on the highway near Kapasari in course of its journey from Deoghar district of Jharkhand to Kolkata, when a speeding truck dashed against the passenger bus, killing 11 people on the spot.

The injured were rushed to the Chanditala Rural Hospital.

Later, nine of the critically injured were shifted to the Uttarpara State General Hospital, where two of them succumbed to their wounds.

Besides, six others were referred to the Kolkata Medical College and Hospital.

The truck driver and helper were also among those critically injured, police said.

Police recovered the mangled vehicles and an investigation was on. About 42 pilgrims, from Kaimur and Rohtas districts of Bihar, were on way to Kalighat temple in Kolkata after visiting the Babadham temple in Deoghar district of Jharkhand, when their bus met with the accident.

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