Tirupur: At least 19 people were injured after a speeding Kerala State Road Transport Corporation bus fell off an over-bridge on Tirupur-Avinashi road here on Kochi-Salem National Highway in the early hours of Sunday.According to police, the incident occurred when the multi-axle bus was heading to Bengaluru from Pathanamthitta in Kerala with 24 passengers on board.“When the bus was passing through Tirupur-Avinashi road around 2am, its driver attempted to overtake a truck in front of him. He, however, lost control over the bus, which crashed into the parapet wall of the over-bridge and fell down,” said a police officer, who didn’t want to be named.The officer said the bus fell through the space that separates over-bridges built to take inbound and outbound traffic, and landed in a slanting position on the underpass. “A major accident was avoided as vehicular movement on Tirupur-Avinashi road was very little at the time.”When alerted, Avinashi fire and rescue services personnel, along with police, rescued all the passengers and took the injured to the nearby government hospital and private hospitals in Avinashi and Coimbatore.“Bus driver Jaison was trapped between dashboard and his seat. So, it was difficult to bring him out. It took more than seven hours to clear the bus using a crane,” the officer said.The Avinashi police have registered a case and further investigation is on. Police suspect speeding to be the reason behind the accident.

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