A couple and their three children were killed after the SUV they were travelling in jumped a median and hit a KSRTC Volvo bus coming from the opposite direction at Entaganahalli village on Hassan Road near Nelamangala.
The victims have been identified as 43-year-old Elumalai and his wife Kamala (35), and their children – their two sons Kiran (14) and Giridhar (13) and their daughter Geetha (10). Elumalai worked as a masonry contractor while his wife worked as a sanitation worker. They were residents of Nayandanahalli in Bengaluru.
Nelamangala traffic police said that the SUV was speeding towards Bengaluru from Hassan when at around 11 pm, Elumalai lost control of the vehicle. The SUV jumped over the road divider and entered the opposite lane and collided into a bus which was headed to Manipal. The bus driver swerved to the left to try and avoid the SUV but ended up ramming into a tree. 10 passengers, including the bus driver, Bhimrao Chavan, have sustained injuries, reported The Hindu, and were taken to a hospital by Nelamangala traffic police.
Elumalai and his family had travelled to Dakshina Kannada district for a pilgrimage. They were returning to Bengaluru when the accident occurred. Visuals of the accident show heavy damage to the SUV as well as the bus.
“KSRTC officials arranged for an alternative bus for the passengers of the bus that was hit. We have seized the SUV and are waiting for the post-mortem report,” said a police officer.
Traffic on the road was disrupted for some time after the incident as the debris was cleared. There have been a number of accidents in Hassan district, especially on the national highway connecting Bengaluru and Mangaluru. Residents have, over the years, held several protests asking civic officials to take measures for road safety.