KOCHI: A 42-year-old woman was killed and several children injured in an accident involving a school bus at Vengoor near Perumbavoor on Tuesday morning. The deceased was identified as Elsy Kuriakose. She was working as an ayah with a private school at Perumbavoor.
According to the police, the bus hit the woman who was walking along the road before it ploughed into a wall and tipped over. The accident took place around 7.45 a.m. when the driver of the bus, going uphill, lost control over the vehicle. A teacher of the school, Smisha Nair, 43, who was walking with Elsy, suffered grievous injuries.
The bus, hired by Santhome Public School, Vengoor, unexpectedly stopped while going uphill and rolled back before overturning on hitting a boundary wall.
Though Elsy was rushed to hospital, she succumbed to her injuries later. Smisha is undergoing treatment at a private hospital near Aluva.
Another teacher, Jiss Saji, 45, who was travelling in the bus, suffered minor head injury. All the students were rushed to a private hospital in Perumbavoor where they were given first-aid.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the bus driver had lost control of the vehicle after its engine turned off while shifting gears. “The driver tried to stop the vehicle, but it fell to the side,” the police said.
A case has been registered against the bus driver, Satheesh of Kayamkulam, for rash and negligent driving and culpable homicide not amounting to murder.