CHENNAI: A private luxury bus, travelling from Kerala to Chennai, met with a dramatic accident on the Tambaram-Maduravoyal Bypass Road on Sunday morning after a front tyre burst, causing the vehicle to plunge into a 15-foot ditch and leave it dangling mid-air.
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In a swift rescue operation, all 20 occupants, including a foreign national, were safely evacuated.
The bus, operating from Kollam to Koyambedu, was on the final leg of its journey with 18 passengers and 2 bus crew. The incident occurred near Tiruneermalai around 10 am on Sunday when a tyre blew suddenly causing the driver to lose control.
The bus veered dangerously, crossed over to the opposite carriageway of the Maduravoyal-Tambaram Road, broke through roadside barriers, and finally came to a precarious halt, suspended among trees and shrubs.
Upon hearing the commotion, bystanders and other motorists immediately rushed to aid the trapped passengers. They were soon joined by teams from the Chromepet Traffic Investigation Wing and the Tambaram Fire and Rescue Service. Together, they successfully extracted all passengers, including a foreign woman traveller, and retrieved their luggage. The passengers were later accommodated on other buses heading to Koyambedu.
Miraculously, no serious injuries were reported. A few passengers sustained minor abrasions but declined hospital treatment. Authorities noted that a major tragedy was averted as the out-of-control bus did not collide with any other vehicles on the busy road.
However, the accident led to severe traffic disruptions on the Maduravoyal-Tambaram stretch of the bypass for over an hour as rescue operations were underway. The Chromepet Traffic Investigation Wing has registered a case and is conducting further inquiries into the cause of the accident.