THOOTHUKUDI: Forty-six passengers travelling on a Ramanathapuram-bound TNSTC bus had a miraculous escape after its rear axle broke and came off while the vehicle was in motion in Kechilapuram near Kazhugumalai on Thursday.
According to sources, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus was heading to Ramanathapuram from Shenkottai. Near Kechilapuram, the axle came off and the vehicle careened out of control. Sources said bus driver Chellathurai averted a major accident, as the vehicle, which fell into a roadside pit after the axle failure, was stopped just in time to avoid a head-on collision with a tamarind tree. A few passengers sustained injuries, but no one required hospitalisation.
The Kazhugumalai police rushed to the spot and rescued the passengers, who were later allotted another bus. A probe is on.