BHUBANESWAR: At least 36 tourists from West Bengal were injured when the bus they were travelling in lost control and swerved off the road at the foothills of the famous Dhauligiri on the outskirts of the City on Tuesday morning.
The injured tourists were rushed to Capital Hospital here. Six passengers suffered multiple fractures and were shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack. Seven others were later moved to the medical college.
Ten passengers are recovering at Capital Hospital while the rest were discharged after receiving preliminary medical attention. There were four children on the bus who also sustained injuries.
The accident took place at about 7.30 am when the bus, carrying over 60 tourists from Midnapore district of West Bengal, was returning from a visit to the iconic Buddhist attraction. On the way back down the hill, the vehicle appeared to have a brake failure which led to the mishap.
As the driver fervently tried to regain control of the vehicle, locals and other tourists tried to block the road with boulders so that the bus could come to a halt but it went off the road to the open fields and turned turtle. Police, Firefighters and ODRAF members rushed to the spot to rescue the passengers. The locals also helped the operation.
Fire officer Ramesh Majhi said he had seen the bus going towards Dhauligiri. “It appears that the brakes failed because when I saw it in the morning, the vehicle was on its way to the tourist spot and it did not have any technical snag,” he said.
Director, Health Services Kailash Dash said, the injured were immediately taken to the hospital in ambulances and PCR vans. Some of them were provided preliminary treatment on the spot.
“All arrangements were made to provide medical attention to the tourists at Capital Hospital. We are in touch with SCB Medical College to remain updated about the health status of those admitted there,” he said. The State Government announced free treatment for all the injured.
Tourism Secretary Arti Ahuja and Khurdha Collector Niranjan Sahu rushed to Capital Hospital to take stock of the situation while Health Secretary Pramod Meherda spoke to his counterpart in WB Government to intimate him about the status. A helpline number was also activated.
The overturned bus was later lifted by cranes. One of the two drivers sustained injuries while the other is absconding. A team of Odisha Motor Vehicle Department also inspected the site to probe the reason behind the mishap. The bus was operating on a temporary permit.