Mumbai BEST bus crash: Death toll rises to 6; 43 others injured

Mumbai: The death toll in the BEST bus accident in Mumbai has gone up to six with three more persons succumbing to their injuries, officials said on Tuesday.

As many as 43 other persons were injured, as against initial reports of 22, in the incident which took place in Kurla (West) area at around 9.30 pm on Monday, they said.

It is suspected the accident near the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) L Ward in Kurla took place due to a brake failure, they said, adding the bus driver has been detained.

According to the officials, the driver of the BEST bus on route number 332 lost control over the wheel and dashed into pedestrians as well as some vehicles.

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking's bus, after ploughing through pedestrians and vehicles, entered into a residential society, Buddha Colony, and came to a halt, they said. Three persons were brought dead from the crash site to nearby Bhabha Hospital, where 22 injured, including a teen girl, were undergoing treatment, said the officials.

Some of the injured were said to be in a critical condition. Multiple vehicles were damaged in the accident. The bus bearing registration number MH01-EM-8228 was going from Kurla railway station to Andheri when the accident occurred, he added.

"It dashed into various vehicles over a 100-metre stretch and the RCC column of Solomon building. The windows of the bus broke on impact. Locals roughed up the driver," an official said.

Zeeshan Ansari, an eyewitness, said "I was standing in front of Royal Sweets shop along with my friends when I saw a bus being driven rashly. The bus suddenly dashed into multiple vehicles as well as pedestrians and entered Buddha Colony. We rushed and brought out the bus driver."

"Many people were lying in a pool of blood. A crowd assembled at the spot and started moving the injured to hospital," Ansari said.

Zaid Ahmed, a 26-year-old resident of the area, said he was leaving his house to go to the railway station when he heard a loud noise.

"I ran to the spot and saw a BEST bus had hit pedestrians, other vehicles, including an autorickshaw and a three cars. I saw some dead bodies in front of my eyes. We rescued the passengers in the autorickshaw and took them to Bhabha Hospital in another three-wheeler. My friends also helped in providing relief to the injured," Ahmed recounted.

Other eyewitnesses said the bus, on route 332 from Kurla to Andheri, also rammed into a police vehicle.

The bus was a 12-metre long electric vehicle manufactured by Hyderabad-based Olectra Greentech and it had been taken by BEST on wet lease, another official said. He pointed out that the drivers of such buses are supplied by the private operator.

"The bus is just three months old. It is registered on August 20 this year in the name of a company called EVEY Trans," a Tardeo Regional Transport Office (RTO) official said. BEST officials said they were having trouble with the probe due to the crowd at the site.

A police official said heavy deployment of personnel has been made at the site to maintain law and order.

Driver booked on charges of culpable homicide

Police have registered a case on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the driver of a BEST bus involved in an accident here which claimed six lives and left 43 others injured, officials said on Tuesday.

Locals caught the bus driver, identified as Sanjay More, immediately after the accident and the police subsequently took him into custody. He was taken to a hospital for a medical test. His blood samples were also collected to examine whether he was under the influence of alcohol, the official said.

The police have registered a case against the bus driver under sections 105 (punishment for culpable homicide that does not amount to murder) and 110 (attempt to commit culpable homicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and relevant provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, he said.

Inputs from PTI.