3 die, 8 critically injured in bus-auto collision in Vaishali

The impact of the collision had left the e-rickshaw completely damaged, and passersby said some of the passengers were flung almost 15 feet away. Prima facie, both the drivers were speeding and possibly lost control of their vehicles.

Three persons were killed and seven others injured as their auto-rickshaw collided head-on with a bus in Bihar’s Vaishali district in the early hours of Tuesday, officials said. The accident happened near Dhanushi village on the Lalganj-Hajipur Road, they said.

3 die, 8 critically injured in bus-auto collision in Vaishali

“All injured have been taken to the nearest government hospital. We are trying to ascertain the identity of the injured persons,” Sub-Divisional Police Officer of Mahnar Gopal Mandal said. The deceased were identified as Rajgir Kumar, Shambhu Shah and Mohammad Dilsher, he said.

After the incident, people went on a rampage, blocked roads and pelted stones on the bus.

The impact of the collision had left the e-rickshaw completely damaged, and passersby said some of the passengers were flung almost 15 feet away. Prima facie, both the drivers were speeding and possibly lost control of their vehicles.

According to police, the bus was heading from Lalganj toward Hajipur when a speeding auto-rickshaw carrying around 12 people from the opposite direction collided with it.

Police said that the collision was severe, resulting in the instant death of three passengers in the auto-rickshaw. Police and rescue teams rushed to the spot immediately after the incident. The bodies were shifted to a nearby hospital for postmortem, and an investigation into the cause of the accident has been initiated. Most of the victims suffered head and facial injuries, leading to their deaths, doctors said.

There were some passengers in the bus when the accident took place. After the accident, the bus driver abandoned the vehicle and fled the spot. Enraged crowd started pelting stones at the bus. Passengers in the bus escaped unhurt.

“The auto rickshaw and the bus have been seized. However, the bus driver fled after the incident. Efforts are being made to arrest him. An investigation is underway,” said SDPO Gopal Mandal.

Meanwhile, CM Nitish Kumar who has who has taken cognisance of the road accident, expressed condolences to the bereaved families and directed officials to immediately reach the scene, expedite relief operations, and provide proper treatment to the injured.