8 Mumbaiites among 16 killed in road mishap

According to the police, the accident took place when the driver of the luxury bus MH01 H 5875 lost control resulting in the bus skidding off the road near Khambne Village near Khed town in Ratnagiri district. The mishap took place about 250 kilometers on National Highway 17 connecting Mumbai with Goa around 3.45 am this morning.

The vehicle hurtled about 25 feet into the ravines crushing through the trees before hitting the rugged terrain in the Western Ghats. The journey originated from Devgad district in South Maharashtra, the police added.

Even as the cause of the accident is being investigated, eyewitnesses told the police that the driver lost control of the bus while negotiating a tortuous curve on the outskrits of Khed town.

The eight victims from the metropolis have been identified as Rajesh Lokegaonkar, Krishna Loke, Narayan Loke’s wife, Rajesh Marulkar (Malad), Nandkishore Khot (Kalyan) and Pramod Jadhav (Mumbai). The others are Paresh Ushe (Rajapur) and Pravin Valoskar.

Among the unidentified dead are four women, two men and two children. Some 38 passengers have been shifted to KEM Hospital at Parel for treatment and some of the victims are in critical condition, police sources revealed.

This is the second major incident in the area in the last two years. Six passengers were killed in a similar accident when a luxury bus skid into a river near Khed last year.

Investigations have revealed that at least hundred private buses ply on the Mumbai-Goa highway to cope with summer holiday rush. A large numbers of the vehicles operate without permission to make a quick buck.

Sources revealed that some of the vehicles are not worth to ply on the extremely tough terrain and some of the drivers are inexperienced to drive on the tortuous route.