Kolkata: As many as six tourists from Bengal, including four women from the state, were killed and around 40 others sustained injuries when a tourist bus rolled down in Kalinga Ghat, near Durgaprasad village in Ganjam district's Bhanjanagar police station area late on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condoled the deaths and stated that the state administration is coordinating with counterparts in Odisha for a quick post-mortem of the bodies and treatment of those injured in the mishap.
"Sad to know that six of our fellow citizens from WB have succumbed to their injuries, while some others are still struggling with the trauma of a grave road accident in the early hours today when they were moving in a hired bus in the Ganjam district of Odisha on their way to Vizag," Banerjee tweeted.
The passenger bus with 77 people, including about 65 tourists on board, late on Tuesday night rolled over at Kalinga Ghat. Among those injured 15 people are in serious condition, the police said on Wednesday adding. Ganjam SP Brijesh Ray said one of them has been shifted to SCB Medical College in Cuttack as his condition worsened.
The ill-fated bus from West Bengal's Hooghly district was moving towards Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh from Daringbadi in the Kandhamal district of Odisha when the mishap took place, the police chief said, adding that police and firefighters from nearby Bhanjangar and G Udaygiri rushed to the spot to rescue the passengers.
Of the six persons killed in the tourist bus mishap, five bodies were found after the overturned vehicle was pulled up using a crane, the SP said. It had successfully crossed a major portion of the Ghat road, but lost control at the last turning due to brake failure.
"I could not stop the bus and it dashed against a post at a speed before making several turns," an unhurt bus driver told reporters. The body of one tourist who died in the mishap were retrieved after breaking the window panes of the bus, Bhanjanagar sub-divisional police officer S S Mishra said.
The dead are Supiya Denre (33), Sanjeet Patra (33), Rima Denre (22), her mother Mausumi Denre and Barnali Manna (34) from Sultanpur in Howrah district and Swapan Gushait (44), the cook from Gopalpur in Hooghly, police said.
The seriously injured were admitted to MKCG Medical College and Hospital here and Bhanjanagar sub-divisional hospital. The condition of at least 10 persons who are being treated at the medical college hospital was stated by its doctors to be serious, police said.
The Chief Minister said that a team from Bengal was being rushed to Odisha. In her tweet, Banerjee said: "Our administration is coordinating with Odisha officials for speedy post mortem of the dead, treatment for the injured, and their return. Rushing a high-level team led by Principal Secretary, Disaster Management and MLA Udaynarayanpur to Odisha. Condolences to the relatives of the deceased, solidarity for the fighting survivors."
Dushyanta Nariyal, Principal Secretary, Disaster Management department, additional District Magistrate Howrah and the Additional Superintendent of Police (Howrah, Rural) left for Odisha.
Firhad Hakim, the state Transport minister said arrangements have been made to bring back those who have escaped unhurt and those who sustained minor injuries. He added that vehicles have also been arranged to bring the bodies of the deceased. Senior officials have taken up the matter with their counterparts to ensure that the best treatment is provided to the injured admitted at the Berhampur State Hospital and Ganjam district hospital.