PONDA: A Kadamba bus veered off the road and crashed into a tree at Torl Shiroda early Sunday morning, injuring 11 passengers. The accident occurred at 7.15 am on a narrow stretch of the road.
One of the passengers, Suchita Gaonkar, 40, a resident of Paj Shiroda, has been admitted to Goa Medical College and Hospital, Bambolim for treatment. Bus driver Raghoba Naik, 54, a resident of Bhati, bus conductor Guna Gaonkar, 57 from Borim, and passengers Sunita Gaonkar, Chandrika Gaonkar, Sulaksha Gaonkar, Anisha Velip (all from Bibal Shiroda) were taken to Margao for further treatment. Other three who sustained minor injuries were treated in the primary health centre at Shiroda and sent home.
The bus accident
According to sources, the Kadamba bus was going from Bibal village to Ponda, and at Torl Shiroda the steering rod of the bus malfunctioned on a dangerous turn and the bus crashed into a mango tree, injuring the passengers. After the accident, the former District Panchayat member Jaideep Shirodkar from Shiroda constituency reached the accident spot and took the six seriously injured bus occupants to Shiroda primary health centre in his own private vehicle. The former minister, Mahadev Naik, and Betoda panch member Chandrakant Samant visited the primary health centre and inquired about the health of the injured passengers.
The DySP from Ponda police station, Rohidas Bhomkar did the panchanama of the accident.
The Kadamba bus that runs on the Bibal to Vasco via Ponda route is always full of officer goers and students but as it was a Sunday morning, there were a handful of passengers travelling in it. Some locals were travelling to Shiroda with their matoli material.
Another accident had occurred 100 metres away from the Sunday’s accident spot a month ago when a bus turned turtle, injuring some students. The road is very narrow and the turn is prone to accidents. The locals are demanding the widening of the road at the earliest.
Crane driver injured in accident at Bandora flyover
A crane dashed against a concrete mixer truck coming from the opposite direction at a dangerous turn on Bandora flyover, causing serious injuries to the crane driver.
The driver is identified as Mithun Kumar Sah, 32, currently residing at Farmagudi. The accident occurred on Sunday morning at 11.30 am. The concrete mixer truck driver Bapu, 30, from Maharashtra sustained minor injuries. The accident happened while the crane was on its way to pull a Kadamba bus that met with an accident at Shiroda the same morning.
The crane was going to Shiroda to the spot where the Kadamba bus had met with an accident, injuring many passengers, driver and conductor. The crane driver lost his control on the flyover at Bandora and the crane went to the other side of the road. At the same time, a concrete mixer truck that was passing in the opposite direction dashed against the crane. The cabin of the crane was damaged and the driver was trapped inside.
The locals rushed to assist the driver and pulled him out, and took him to the sub-district hospital where he was referred to be taken to Goa Medical College and Hospital. The hawaldar from Ponda police station, Devidas Paryekar, did the panchanama of the accident.
The accident spot at Bandora has witnessed more than five such accidents. The accidents happen when the vehicles travelling from Farmagudh to Dhavalim reach the dangerous turn. The locals have been demanding to rectify the dangerous turn but the PWD department has not paid any heed to the demand.
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