Survivors in the Volvo bus which overturned after hitting a median near Hoskote in Bangalore Rural district on Monday morning had a tough time getting out of it. For, the bus had fallen on the side the door was located.
The presence of mind shown by Srinivas, a Hoskote resident, who was having tea at a shop near the accident spot and other passersby, saved many a life.
“I heard the stranded passengers screaming. I and other passersby went near the bus, but could not pull out anyone as it had fallen on the left side where the door is located. The front windshield was partially damaged. We got some clubs and a hammer and broke the glass,” Srinivas said.
“It was a tough task pulling out the passengers as they were all jammed inside. Most of them were in a state of shock and did not know how to respond to the situation. Many lives were saved because a hospital is located nearby,” he said. The accident occurred near MVJ Medical and Research Hospital. People from nearby localities rushed to the spot and helped shift the injured to the hospital. After preliminary treatment at MVJ Hospital, some were shifted to HOSMAT hospital in the City.
A majority of the passengers in the bus are said to be from Nellore and were on their way to Bangalore. Neehar Reddy, 28, an employee at Centum, was among the injured and has been admitted to HOSMAT for treatment of his dislocated left elbow. He said, “I was asleep and was woken up only when I fell from one side to the other. I landed on the passengers who were sitting on the left side. I struggled to get out till some people came to our rescue.”
“We boarded the bus at Nellore at 10.30 pm. The driver drove the bus continously without a break, except at the passenger pick-up points at Tirupati and other places,” Reddy said.
Uma Mahesh, another injured passenger, is in the ICU of HOSMAT for multiple fractures. He works for Micro Labs in the City.
Kodanda Reddy, a relative of Mahesh, said, “None from the travel agency has approached the injured. We called them up. They promised to come in 10 minutes, but did not. The cost of the treatment is Rs two lakh and we have no support. All we demand is that the police take strict action against these people.”
“The driver may have dozed off as he was at the wheel for long hours. They did not stop the vehicle even for tea and this shows their urgency in reaching the destination,” said the relative of an injured passenger. K V Rajesh, owner of Rajesh Travels to which the bus belongs, was unavailable for comments. An employee of the company said that the bus was in a good condition.
