Kozhikode: Driver falls asleep, bus runs off road

KOZHIKODE: Twenty passengers and the crew of a KSRTC bus had a narrow escape during wee hours on Saturday in the Thamarassery Ghat road when the vehicle ran off the road as the driver slept while behind the wheels. The incident occurred soon after the bus passed the 8th curve of the ghat road after 3 am. The bus rammed into the safety wall and the front tyres went over the wall. Had it went any further the bus would have fallen about 1000 feet down the valley.

The Sulthan Bathery bound bus was coming from Thodupuzha. KSRTC drivers union alleged that the incident took place as the driver did not get sufficient time to take rest. The bus started at 6 pm from Sulthan Bathery on Friday morning reached Thodupuzha two hours late. Soon the driver started the return journey, the leaders said.