20 dead after passenger bus and truck collide in Tamil Nadu’s Tirupur district

Tamil Nadu: Twenty people died in a collision between a Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus and a truck near Avinashi town of Tirupur district. The bus was going from Karnataka’s Bengaluru to Kerala’s Ernakulam. Bodies were taken to Tirupur government hospital. Deputy Tehsildar of Avinashi had initially confirmed that 19 people — 14 men and five women, died in the collision which took place at 4.30 am.

Kerala Chief Minister CM Pinarayi Vijayan has instructed district collector of Palakkad to provide emergency medical care to the victims of the accident. Procedures to identify the deceased are in progress. “All possible relief measures will be taken in cooperation with the government of Tamil Nadu and the District Collector of Tirupur,” CMO said in a statement.

“Senior officials from KSRTC have rushed to the site. 20 feared dead and several injured. KSRTC Managing Director will conduct an inquiry and submit a report,” said Kerala Transport Minister AK Saseendran

According to reports, there were 48 passengers on the bus and many were in deep sleep when the mishap took place. “The bus was going to Thiruvananthapuram from Bengaluru, while the lorry was coming from the opposite direction on the Coimbatore-Salem Highway when the mishap occurred at 4.30 am,” police were quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

According to sources, the container lorry, which had Kerala registration, suffered a tyre blowout and lost control. It went and plunged into the oncoming Volvo bus. The driver and the conductor of the KSRTC bus died on the spot itself. The deceased bus and conductor were identified as TD Gireesh and Baiju. The injured were rushed to the Avinashi government hospital. The bus belonged to Ernakulam depot.

Police have established a helpline number — 9495099910 for assistance. KSRTC officials said that the container lorry that was over speeding when it rammed into the bus. Most of the deceased were from Thrissur, Palakkad and Ernakulam.