In a tragic incident, at least 21 persons were killed and around 30 others seriously injured when a bus in which they were travelling fell off a bridge near Puruna Manitri near Athamalik in Anugul district of Odisha.
Angul’s Supretendent of Police confirmed the death toll. The toll may go up as some of the injured were critical. Quoting preliminary report from police source said that the front tyre of the bus burst after which the driver lost control over the vehicle resulting in the accident.
Police and fire personnel rushed to the spot and have launched rescue operation. Air ambulance is being arranged to shift the injured to Angul and other hospitals. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed deep grief over the deaths of people in the accident. He directed the Angul district Collector and SP to directly look into rescue operation and said the State Government would bear all expenditure for treatment of the injured.