12 injured as BMTC bus topples on flyover

A BMTC bus toppled after crashing into the side ramp of the Chord Road flyover at morning rush hour on Wednesday, wounding 12 people but giving a narrow escape to many others.

The bus (bearing registration number KA 01/FA 2309) was plying on the route number 180A from Kaval Byrasandra to Karnataka Housing Board in northern Bengaluru. The route belongs to the BMTC’s Sumanahalli depot.

As the bus approached the upper ramp of the flyover near Rajajinagar 1st Block around 10.45 am, its front wheels hit the retaining wall on the left side. The bus toppled in no time. The Malleswaram traffic police rushed to the spot and shifted the injured to the nearby Fortis Hospital.

The driver, the conductor and four women were among the injured. One woman sustained multiple fractures to her hand and is being treated in the ICU. Others are being treated at the KC General and Fortis hospitals, police said.

“We have received and treated 12 patients following the BMTC bus mishap that happened in the morning today. Of them, one has been shifted to ICU for further treatment, one requires surgery, five have already been shifted to the ward and the rest were discharged after giving necessary treatment,” said a spokesperson for Fortis Hospital, Rajajinagar.

Traffic diverted

Traffic was diverted to two alternative routes. Police used a crane to lift the bus and tow it away to clear the traffic on the flyover. Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) P Harishekaran visited the spot and supervised the towing away of the bus.

Soumyalatha S K, DCP (Traffic-West), said there were no children on the bus.