According to the police officials, at least five people died and about 15 others suffered critical injuries after a tourist bus derailed in National Highway 57 in the Nayagarh district of Odisha on Friday night. The accident occurred at approximately 1 am towards Takera Ghat, which falls within the Daspalla police precinct, a route that is characterised by its challenging routes and steep turns.
These killed individuals are known as Hari Patra, Laxmi Patra, Suprabha Sahu, Sumati Sahu and the driver, Praveen Sahu. Prelude research showed that the bus was carrying close to 60 pilgrims of Berhampur on their way to tourist destinations of western Odisha when it lost control during maneuvering of a bend.
Police said that the car crashed into one of the rocks on the side of the road and swerved and hit its front half was completely mangled. The effect was so serious to the extent that some of the passengers were thrown off the bus, and others were still stuck in the bus rubble.
Rescue operation was performed through an immediate move by local residents, the police, and the fire service personnel. Those injured were first transported to the immediate health facilities and transferred to the Nayagarh District Headquarters Hospital. Medical experts found that no less than 15 travelers are in the critical state with others having minor to moderate injuries.
The eyewitnesses also indicated that this could have been largely due to over speeding since it was reported that the bus could not even slow down at the turn. The investigation by the police has commenced in details, with possible causes being examined being driver exhaustion, state of the roads and mechanical anomalies in the car.