Miraculous escape for RTC bus passengers

Vijayawada: As many as 47 passengers of an Express bus service of the APSRTC had a miraculous escape when it went out of control and plunged into a gorge near Mekavaripalem between Challapalli-Nadakuduru villages on Sunday.

According to eyewitnesses, the Avanigadda-Vijayawada bus left Challapalli bus stand and within 15 minutes it landed in the gorge. There were 47 passengers including seven children in the bus at the time of mishap.

Hearing the cries of the passengers, the farm workers from the nearby fields rushed to the bus and helped the passengers to get out of the bus.

Challapalli CI Naga Prasad and SI China Babu reached the place of mishap and informed the 108 service. The 108 vehicles from Challapalli, Movva and Mopidevi mandal reached the spot and shifted the injured to the Challapalli hospital.

The huge potholes on the road between Challapalli and Nadakuduru were said to be the cause of the accident. The bus in order to avoid the pothole took a turn and landed in the gorge, it is said.

At least 20 bus services are being run between Avanigadda and Vijayawada with most of them needing overhauling.

Avanigadda depot manager K Hanumanta Rao said that the buses are inspected every two months and the buses are in good condition.