Speeding Lorry Collides With School Bus, Kills 15 Children In Etah
A bus-lorry collision killed 15 children and injured many more amidst dense fog in UP's Etah
Etah: At least 15 children were killed and another two dozen were injured when their school bus collided with a speeding lorry amid dense fog on the Aliganj-Paliyali road in Uttar Pradesh’s Etah district. The bus was carrying children between the ages of 3 and 15 to the JS Vidyaniketan School.
The mishap occurred near Asadnagar village under Aliganj Kotwali police station area, which is a four-hour drive from the national capital.
The driver of the bus also died in the crash which is the latest deadly accident in a country with one of the worst road safety records in the world.
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The truck that was involved in the accident was loaded with sand and was speeding, Javed Ahmed, Director General of Police in Uttar Pradesh told news agency Associated Press.
Another police officer, Daljeet Singh, told NDTV that there was dense fog which sharply reduced visibility at the time of the crash.
District Magistrate, Etah, Shambhu Nath put the toll at 15 and said eight of the children had died on the spot. Near 20 injured students had been rushed to different hospitals, he added.
The District Magistrate said orders have been issued to cancel the recognition of the school. All schools in the district were meant to be closed due to the intense cold, according to official orders. He also said that 12 of the deceased children had been identified.
Soon after getting the news, senior officials rushed to the accident spot and supervised rescue and relief operations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted his condolences, saying, “Anguished by (the) tragic accident in UP’s Etah. I share the pain of the bereaved families & condole (the) passing away of young children.”
I pray that those injured in the accident in Etah recover at the earliest.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 19, 2017
Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav also offered their condolences.
The Chief Minister has asked the district officials to launch all-out rescue operations and ensure proper treatment of the injured.
