Five killed as car, KSRTC bus collide

Kollam: Five persons, including two women and a child, died on the spot when their car collided with a KSRTC bus near Karunagappally, some 35 km from here, on Wednesday. The dead, Ms  Shahida, 42,  of Thottikkala at  Alamcode, grandson Ajmal, 5, daughter Shamina, 19, son Muhammad Alif, 15, and car driver Nabeel, 21,  of Nabeel Manzil, Kunnuvaram, Alamcode, were  returning after Eid celebrations at a relative’s house in Wayanad.

The accident took place around 7.40 am at Ananda junction when a Palakkad-bound KSRTC superfast bus from Thiruvananthapuram rammed the car. According to eyewitnesses, the speeding bus hit the car after overtaking another. Locals and firefighters from Karunagappally took out bodies trapped in the wreckage. Eight passengers in the bus suffered minor injuries.

The family had left for the relative’s house at Sulthan Bathery on Monday. Shahida leaves behind husband Nasurudeen and daughters Shafina and Shanifa. Nasurudeen and son-in-law Haseem are NRIs. Car driver Nabeel leaves behind father Shukkoor, mother Faseela, and sister Nabeena.The bodies were released to relatives after autopsy at the Karunagappally taluk hospital. The body of Nabeel will be buried at Alamcode juma masjid on Thursday. The funeral of others will be held after Nasurudeen and Haseem return.

Ananda junction has been notorious for accidents. A gas tanker mishap took place there in 2010, claiming four lives. A kilometre-long stretch between Puthentheruvu and Ananda junction witnesses frequent accidents owing to the unscientific road construction and speeding by vehicles. The area also lacks proper sign boards.