Andhra Pradesh

Three killed, 44 injured as RTC bus falls into valley

RESCUE OPERATIONS: Youths from nearby villages lifting the passengers who were injured when an APSRTC bus plunged into a valley at Rapur of Nellore district on Monday.

RAPUR (NELLORE): Three women were killed and 44 others including the bus driver and conductor were injured when an APSRTC bus plunged into a 100-foot-deep valley at Rapur ghat here on Monday.

M. Narasamma (70) of Rapur and T. Venkatanarasamma (70) of Madhavaram of Kadapa district were among the dead while the identity of another woman aged around 50 years could not be ascertained till evening. The injured were admitted to various hospitals at Rapur, Nellore and other nearby places. “Though seven of the injured who have been admitted at the Government Hospital at Nellore were in a critical condition, they are out of danger,” Superintendent of Police B. Malla Reddy told The Hindu.

According to the SP, the bus was heading towards Vakadu from Kadapa when the mishap took place. The bus, which was apparently driven at a high speed, fell into the valley after its driver lost his control while negotiating a narrow curve. Almost all the bus passengers were tossed while the bus rolled down the steep slope.

Many young persons from nearby villages and also the local police rushed to their rescue immediately after the accident, but they found it difficult to carry the injured passengers on the steep slope of the valley. But the rescue work gathered momentum only after the SP reached the spot. He personally supervised the rescue operations while others formed a human chain to bring the injured out of the valley.

The SP said that the administration would put railings along the road with the spot from where the bus plunged into valley becoming a death trap due to lack of railings. It may be recalled that several accidents had taken place at the same spot in the last few years and claimed several lives.

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