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Tourist bus from Hyderabad falls into gorge in AP; 4 killed, 20 injured
The driver apparently lost the control over the steering while taking the turn as a result of which the bus slipped into the valley.
At least four people were killed and 20 others injured, five of them severely wounded, when a tourist bus which they were travelling in fell off the ghat road and plunged into a 200-feet gorge near the picturesque tourist spot of Araku valley in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam district on Friday night, the police said.
Visakhapatnam (rural) superintendent of police (SP) B Krishna Rao said the accident happened when the bus was negotiating a turn at the hair-pin bend near Dumuku village of Anantagiri block at around 7.30 pm.
“The driver apparently lost the control over the steering while taking the turn as a result of which the bus slipped into the valley, overturned and fell into a gorge about 200 feet deep. The bus fell on a huge tree,” he said, adding that the police from Anantagiri and Araku rushed to the spot to take up rescue operations with the help of locals.
While four passengers, including two women, a child and an old man, were killed on the spot, at least 10 others sustained injuries. “There were 24 people in the vehicle, including the driver. All 23 passengers included members of the same family and their relatives from Shaikpet area in Hyderabad,” Anantagiri sub-inspector of police K Sudhakar said.
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The bus (registration number TS 09 UB 3729) belongs to Dinesh Travels from Hyderabad. The family members hired the bus and left Hyderabad for a picnic in Araku Valley on February 10 and were supposed to return by February 14. “The accident appears to have occurred due to brake failure,” Sudhakar said.
The injured were moved to Sringavarapu Kota government hospital for treatment. “Five of them, whose condition is serious, were being shifted to Visakhapatnam government hospital,” the sub-inspector said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed shock over the ghastly accident in Araku valley. “Distressed to hear about the accident in Visakhapatnam, AP. Condolences to the families of those who lost their lives. Prayers with the injured. May they recover soon,” PM Modi tweeted.
Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao expressed shock over the loss of four lives of Hyderabadis in the Araku Valley accident and expressed condolences to the bereaved families. He asked chief secretary Somesh Kumar to coordinate with Andhra Pradesh DGP Goutham Sawang, DIG Kalidas and SP B Krishna Rao to supervise rescue operations.
Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswabhushan Harichandan and chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy also expressed shock and grief over the mishap on the ghat road of Araku valley. They conveyed condolences to the bereaved family members and speedy recovery of the injured.
