Five persons, including four women, died in this northern Kerala district on Monday evening after a school bus collided with the autorickshaw they were travelling in, police said. Of the five, four persons died on the spot following the accident and one -- the auto driver -- succumbed to his injuries on the way to the hospital, police said.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan condoled the deaths saying it was a very tragic incident. In his statement, the CM said he shares in the grief of the bereaved family.
An officer of Badiadka police station, within whose jurisdictional limits the incident occurred, said that according to preliminary investigation the bus was speeding and coming from the wrong direction around a curve and that led to the accident.
The accident took place around 5.30 pm. The bus was returning after dropping off school children and therefore no kids were in it, police said. The school bus and the auto -- which was badly damaged -- were seized by the police, the officer said.
The bus driver is in police custody and an FIR would be lodged soon, he said. Some local residents of the area told TV channels that despite calling for an ambulance following the accident, it took time for the vehicle to reach there.
They also said that there have been accidents in the area in the past, but none so tragic. The four women were members of the same family, they said.
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