Sundargarh: Four people died and more than 20 others sustained injuries after a bus collided head-on with an iron-laden truck on National Highway-143 near Musabira village under Chandiposh police limits in Odisha’s Sundargarh district on Tuesday night.
According to sources, the accident took place around 9:10 pm when the bus, travelling from Rourkela to Mangalpur in Jajpur district, veered across the road divider into the oncoming lane, resulting in a severe head-on crash with the truck coming from the opposite direction, after the driver lost control over the vehicle
While two persons died on the spot, another tw
o were declared dead at hospital after being rescued by firefighters from Bonai, who had to use gas cutters to pull out the injured from the mangled remains of the vehicles. The deceased include both drivers of the bus, the bus helper, and the truck driver. They have been identified as Manas Ranjan Panda (35), bus driver and resident of Mandarkhand village under Nandipur panchayat in Jajpur’s Dasarathpur block, Niranjan Rout (53), second driver, from Purunasahi village under Malikapur panchayat in Jajpur’s Dasarathpur block. Shiva Prasad Nayak (52), bus helper from Bajrapat village under Mangalpur panchayat.
The bus conductor, Akshaya Gedi (47) of Khandara panchayat, suffered critical injuries, including a head injury and a fractured left arm. At least five of the injured passengers are reported to be in serious condition. All the injured were rushed to nearby hospitals. A special medical team has been formed for their treatment.
Police have launched an investigation to determine the exact cause of the accident.