Five members of a Navi Mumbai family, including a three-year-old boy, were killed in a traffic accident in Satara after their bus hurtled off a bridge and fell 50 feet early Saturday morning, police said.
The extended family of 11 was heading to Goa on vacation.
The Nair family riding a Tempo Traveler bus had left Vashi for Goa on Friday around 9pm.
The accident took place on the Tarali river bridge on the outskirts of the Umbraj village in Karad, Satara, between 4.30 am and 5 am, according to police.
“The driver of the vehicle fell asleep and ended up crashing on the bridge. The vehicle fell 50 feet from the bridge by the river bank, ”said AL Gorad, assistant inspector at the Umbraj police station.
One of the injured occupants called the emergency police helpline number, after which a rescue operation was mounted.
Five people, including Madhusudhan Nair, 42, his wife Usha, 40, their son Aditya, 23, were killed along with Sajan Nair, 35, and their three-year-old son Aarav.
Local traffic police officers said the place where the accident occurred is not a black dot, a place where accidents are more likely to occur. The two-lane bridge is separated by a space. By the way, a place a few meters after the bridge ends is prone to crashes, police said.
“There has been no such collision on the bridge. However, crash barriers have been installed on the sides of the roads to prevent crashes. It seems that the vehicle was going at such a high speed that it crashed into the barriers while launching from the bridge, ”said Asmita Patil, in charge of the Karad traffic police.
The driver and six other members of the Nair family were injured in the accident. Everyone is said to be on the mend and out of harm’s way.
The wounded were rushed to the Satara Civil Hospital and the bodies of the five victims were sent to the Karad Civil Hospital for autopsy.
“We contacted his relatives in Mumbai to inform them about the accident. Family members are on the way, ”said a Satara police officer.
Police have recorded a case of hasty driving and wrongful death against 30-year-old driver Rinku Gupta. Police said he was sober at the time of the accident but may have been fatigued.
After the injured were rescued, the police deployed cranes to remove the vehicle.
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