BARGARH: A person died and 23 others sustained injuries after the bus in which they were travelling was hit by a speeding tanker truck near Sohela College here in the wee hours of Sunday. The deceased was identified as Atar Dev of Jalgaon in Maharashtra. The incident took place at around 1 am on Sunday.
Sources said the bus carrying 45 passengers was on way to Madhya Pradesh from Puri. The vehicle stopped near the local college on Bargarh-Sohela road and some passengers were getting down from it. All of a sudden, a speeding tanker truck rammed into the bus from behind.
Due to the impact of the collision, Atar was killed on the spot. Of the 23 injured passengers, eight sustained critical injuries. All the injured were rushed to VIMSAR, Burla. Sources said the condition of five injured passengers is critical and they have been kept under observation.
While the tanker driver fled after the accident, Sohela seized both the vehicles and launched an investigation into the incident.