Indian bus plunges into river:
At least 50 feared dead
INDIA: At least 17 people were killed and a further 35 feared dead
after a passenger bus plunged into a fast-flowing river in central
India, police said Thursday.
The bus crashed into the river when trying to cross a flooded bridge
in the state of Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday evening.
“The rescue work is ongoing and specialist teams are at the scene
searching for bodies washed away by the water,” local inspector general
of police Pawan Jain told AFP by telephone.
“We are uncertain of the number of people travelling in the bus, but
it might have been between 70 and 80. About 25 people are being treated
for injuries in hospital.”
The crash occurred at a crossing of the Bagdi river in Dewas
district, about 100 kilometres from Bhopal, the state capital of Madhya
Pradesh.
India has the highest annual road death toll in the world, according
to the World Health Organization, with accidents caused by speeding,
careless driving, poor roads, overcrowding and poor vehicle maintenance.
Bhopal, Thursday, AFP |