THANE: Twelve persons on board a Bhiwandi-bound MSRTC bus suffered severe injuries when their bus came hurtling down the SATIS bridge and crashed into a slow-moving Shahapur-bound state transport bus at 12.15 pm on Thursday. The freak accident occurred at the descend point of the SATIS bridge near the Masunda lake and the impact of the hit was such that a passenger seated next to the driver of the Bhiwandi-bound bus was flung out on the streets.The 23-year-old Varun Mhaske who landed on the streets from the drivers cabin said, “It was hardly 10 minutes since our bus left the upper deck of SATIS and suddenly the driver applied brakes and I was literally thrown out of the window. Since the driver had the seat belt on he didn’t sustain any injuries. I have injuries on my waist, chest and the elbow. Thankfully nothing major.”Eleven others on-board were bleeding from their heads, faces and chest. They were rushed to the civil hospital. Doctors at the hospital said there was no cause for worry and barring two commuters, who are being probed for possible internal bleeding, all others were discharged by late evening.Police said prime facie the accident occurred as the driver of the Shahapur-bound bus BV Dhangar, had slowed down the bus and was attempting to maneuver the heavy vehicle to the left as the steering wheel had jammed. At that moment, the bus speeding from behind dashed onto it. Assistant police inspector (traffic), Ramesh Jadhav said, “The Shahapur bus was facing technical problems and its steering wheel was jammed. So the driver was trying to pull over the vehicle to one side. The bus coming from behind was cruising at a great speed and was unable to stop. The driver S.B Geete rammed his vehicle onto the bus ahead.”“Both the drivers have been taken to Thane Nagar police station. After recording the statements further investigations will take place,” added Jadhav.An official from MSRTC said, “We will be paying Rs 500 to every patient. A form will be given to all victims wherein they would have to fill the details of their injuries after which if they are liable to further compensation.”

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