32 pilgrims killed as tourist bus from Hyderabad to Shirdi falls off bridge

[Sir john]

At least 32 devotees were killed and more than 20 injured some of them seriously, when their bus fell off a bridge in Osmanabad district of Maharashtra in the wee hours today. The victims hailing from Hyderabad were returning after a pilgrimage to Shirdi Saibaba Temple in Ahmednagar district, when the mishap occurred at 2:40 AM, police said. The injured have been shifted to Solapur civil hospital. The deceased are yet to be identified. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has expressed grief over the incident and has directed Chief Secretary Pankaj Dwivedi to help those injured. A team of medical and government officials from Andhra Pradesh has left for the spot to help the injured and make arrangements to coordinate with the Maharashtra state officials, Commissioner, Information and Public Relations R V Chandravadan said. "We need to get more details about the incident and number of casualties," he said. The victims had boarded the private bus last evening from here. Meanwhile, anxious family members of the victims rushed to the office of the travel agency which was operating the bus at Lakadi-ka-Pul here to find out the condition of their relatives.

RIP

[Sir john]

Bus, truck collide in Jalore; 18 burnt alive

At least 18 people were burnt alive and 42 others were hurt when a private bus caught fire after colliding with a truck carrying inflammable material in Jalore district on Friday. The incident occurred at 5.30 pm at Sivan village in Sanchor tehsil of the district when a bus from Dhorimana to Deesa carrying nearly 50 passengers collided head on with a truck. Both the bus and the truck caught fire and overturned. Villagers from nearby areas rushed to the spot. A police rescue team and administration officials soon followed. Of the deceased, 13 were men, three women while two bodies were burnt beyond recognition. "Several passengers got trapped inside the bus. We managed to rescue 30 people. The condition of one is said to be critical. He has been referred to a hospital in Deesa town in Gujarat," said RK Soni, sub divisional magistrate, Jalore. Superintendent of Police, Jalore, Deepak Kumar said, "So far, not a single deceased has been identified. The bus driver who managed to survive is being asked to identify the passengers. The police and medical teams are also talking to injured patients to expedite the process of identifying the deceased." The officer said that the ill-fated bus belonged to one Vishnoi Travels.

[achilles]

Rest in Peace.

[Sidhoni]

RIP.