Eight killed as bus falls into Kerala river (Second Lead)

KOTTAYAM - At least seven people died when the bus they were travelling in fell into the Meenachil river near here Tuesday, officials and witnesses said. A person engaged in rescue operations also collapsed, taking the toll in the incident to eight.

Twenty passengers were rescued by locals but a few were still reported missing.

The bus was going from Shertallai to Kottayam when, according to a survivor, it hit an electric post and plunged into the river. The accident occurred three kilometres before Kottayam.

Witnesses said the bus was carrying over 40 passengers and most of them were students who had boarded it from the tourist destination of Kumarakom.

“The bus suddenly hit a post and fell into the river. As soon as the bus fell into the water, it sank and some of us somehow came to the top of the bus and swam. We were picked up by locals,” said Jyothilekshmi, a college student who was among the rescued.

Those killed include five men, two women and a girl child, district authorities said. The bodies of the victims have been kept at the Medical College Hospital and the district hospital at Kottayam.

Police and fire brigade personnel reached the accident spot and three cranes were engaged in lifting the bus out of water. Rescue work was difficult as the bus fell into the river where the water is over 30 feet deep.

The ill-fated bus was pulled out of the river after nearly four hours. The rescue operations gathered steam after two navy helicopters arrived from Kochi with experienced divers. The search operation is still under way, authorities said.