Footboard travel proves fatal for man

Coimbatore: A 31-year-old man died after he fell from a crowded bus on Lawley Road here on Wednesday morning. The victim, Manikandan R, was a flower vendor at the Flower Market, police said. "He had boarded the Gandhipuram-Anaikatti bus around 8am from the Velandipalayam bus stop to work.

As it was crowded, Manikandan was standing on the footboard. Around 8.15am, while the bus was passing through the Lawley Road Junction, the driver applied break. "Manikandan was thrown off and hit his head on the road," an officer of the traffic investigation wing, west zone, said.

Manikandan was taken to the Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital. However, he succumbed to the injuries at 10.35am, the officer said. A postmortem was conducted and the body was handed over to the family. This is the second such incident in the west zone of the city this year. "The previous incident occurred near Kurichi Kulam," the officer added.