Eight climb atop drowning bus rescued
Ongole: All 8 passengers of an RTC bus, including the crew, had a miraculous escape when strong currents of the Musi rivulet flood caught the vehicle on Thursday.
The rivulet was flowing above danger mark because of the incessant rains when the Tirupati bound Markapur depot bus was washed away to a distance of 50 feet at Edurallapadu village of Konakalamitla mandal.
This resulted in the driver losing control. Three passengers who could swim jumped in to the water to save themselves. They clung on to the partially drowned bus and yelled for help.
Two passengers managed to reach the floating side of the bus by holding on to near-by tree branches. While three swimmers kept the bus afloat, others had difficulty in balancing themselves and to stay alive as the vehicle was slowly getting washed away.
Local people came to the rescue of the trapped passengers. Guided by officials, they used ropes to save the passengers. At one point desperate Tahsildar Padmavati contacted the district Collector urging him to send a helicopter as the rescue was becoming difficult with the water flow increasing.
However, local residents intensified their efforts with ropes. Their committed and coordinated work paid off as all trapped passengers came out of the water.
News Posted: 25 October, 2013
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