Death Toll In Mumbai Bus Crash Rises To 6, Eyewitnesses Recall How The Bus Hit Pedestrians
Mumbai BEST Bus Cash: The driver of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus lost control of the wheels on route A322 while plying from Kurla station to Sakinaka, an official said.
Mumbai BEST Bus Cash: Three more people succumbed to injuries after the tragic bus accident in Mumbai, taking the death toll to six on Tuesday. As many as 49 others were injured in the incident which took place near the Kurla railway station around 9.30 pm on Monday. The driver of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus lost control of the wheels on route A322 while plying from Kurla station to Sakinaka, an official said.
The bus dashed into pedestrians and dragged several vehicles along the way before entering a residential society. The transport body said the bus "speed accelerated" after the driver lost control over the wheels.
The bus driver, Sanjay More, has been detained, and a case has been registered. CCTV footage showed the chaos that ensued. The video captured the bus's front dragging along the road, with a stampede-like situation breaking out after the incident.
The bus was a 12-metre long electric vehicle manufactured by Hyderabad-based Olectra Greentech and it had been taken by BEST on wet lease, an official earlier said.
The Mumbai police have shut the SG Barve Marg, connecting to Kurla station, for traffic movement.
As a result, BEST is operating buses on as many as 10 routes from other nearby locations instead of plying to Kurla station, PTI reported quoting an official from the transport body. Barve road is one of the busiest routes connecting to Kurla station. Scores of passengers take buses to reach the Bandra-Kurla Complex and other locations from Kurla bus stand located on Barve road.
'I Saw Dead Bodies In Front Of My Eyes': Eyewitness
An eyewitness to the bus crash said the bus swerved over a stretch of 200 metres before hitting several vehicles and pedestrians, news agency PTI reported. Zaid Ahmed said he was leaving his house to go to the railway station when he heard a loud noise.
"I ran to the spot and saw a BEST bus had hit pedestrians and other vehicles, including an autorickshaw and three cars. I saw some dead bodies in front of my eyes," the 26-year-old man said.
The driver was speeding and the bus swerved for about 200 metres before it dashed into multiple vehicles on the road, he added.
"We rescued passengers from the autorickshaw and took them to Bhabha Hospital in another three-wheeler. My friends also helped in providing relief to the injured," Ahmed recounted.
Other eyewitnesses said the bus also rammed into a police vehicle.