At least six people were killed and 19 injured after a bus fell into a canal in West Bengal’s Hooghly district on Tuesday. District Police Chief Sukesh Jain said that the Kolkata-bound vehicle collided with a bridge railing before falling into the Dakatia Khal canal near Gojarmore at around 9 am, PTI reported.
Police personnel and residents started rescue operations and the injured passengers were taken to Haripal Hospital. A team of the state disaster management department has been sent to the spot.
Jain said nobody was arrested in connection with the incident yet and that the police were looking for the driver. The bus conductor was injured and receiving treatment, he added.
“Forensic experts have collected samples from the accident site,” Jain said. “They have also collected samples from the bus and are trying to find out whether it was a mechanical snag or a fault of the driver is yet be ascertained.”
In January, at least 42 people were killed and several reported missing after a bus plunged into a canal rose in Murshidabad district. In another accident, eight people died and 25 others were injured after a bus fell into a canal in Nadia district in August last year.
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