BEST conductor killed in four-bus pile-up near Amboli Naka in Mumbai
According to officials, a tree had fallen on the road earlier in the afternoon, leading to heavy congestion and forcing three BEST buses to halt on the stretch.
Officials said a BEST wet-lease bus operating on route 251 from Andheri Station West to Versova allegedly failed to stop in time and rammed into the stationary buses from behind. (Express photo) A 52-year-old BEST conductor was killed in a four-bus pile-up near Amboli Naka in Andheri West on Thursday afternoon after a wet lease BEST bus crashed into three buses stranded on the road due to a fallen tree, officials said.
The deceased was identified as Shekhar Baburao Rawate, who worked as a conductor. The accident took place around 1.15 pm on the stretch between Amboli Naka and Rajkumar bus stop.
According to officials, a tree had fallen on the road earlier in the afternoon, leading to heavy congestion and forcing three BEST buses to halt on the stretch. The stranded buses included route number 266/32 (bus number 7783), route number 242/32 (bus number 7774) and route number 249/33 (bus number 7778).
Officials said a BEST wet lease bus operating on route 251 from Andheri station West to Versova allegedly failed to stop in time and rammed into the stationary buses from behind, triggering a pile-up involving four buses.
“At the time of the accident, the buses were stationary because of the traffic disruption caused by the fallen tree. The impact was severe and the conductor unfortunately came between two buses during the collision,” a senior BEST official said.
The conductor of the bus shifted Rawate to Cooper Hospital immediately after the accident, but doctors declared him dead before treatment could begin at around 1.35 pm, officials said. (Express Photo)
Rawate, who was attached to the front bus on route 266/32, was reportedly walking behind the queue of stranded buses when the collision occurred. During the impact, he was trapped between bus number 7778 and the approaching bus, suffering serious injuries.
The conductor of the bus shifted Rawate to Cooper Hospital immediately after the accident, but doctors declared him dead before treatment could begin at around 1.35 pm, officials said.
According to sources, the conductor had reportedly stepped down from the bus to check the situation after the tree collapse, when the bus ahead of him, allegedly driven by a permanent BEST employee, suddenly reversed without noticing him between the two buses. The conductor was then crushed between the vehicles and later succumbed to his injuries, sources said.
No passengers were injured in the incident, though the crash led to heavy traffic congestion in the Amboli Naka-Andheri West stretch for some time before police and civic authorities cleared the damaged buses and removed the fallen tree.
Officials said further investigation is underway and police are expected to examine CCTV footage and record statements of bus staff and eyewitnesses.
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