Yavatmal: The lone survivor of the ghastly road accident, which claimed 11 lives near Kosdani village in Arni tehsil of Yavatmal district on Friday, is struggling for her life at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Nagpur.
All the deceased and the survivor, Neha Mehare, 17, were on way to Nanded gurdwara when a truck rammed a Tavera SUV on Bori-Tuljapur stretch of the national highway.
Ten passengers of the SUV, including five minors, three women and the driver, were killed on the spot. Five of the victims were residents of Delhi, two were from Karnal, Haryana, and three, including the SUV driver, from Nagpur. A 15-year-old girl, Kiran Mehare, a resident of Pathankot in Punjab, was declared brought dead at Yavatmal GMCH.
“Since condition of Neha was critical, she was referred to Nagpur GMCH,” said Yavatmal GMCH dean Dr Manish Shrigirwar.
Neha was put on ventilator at the trauma care centre of Nagpur GMCH. Pavitra Patnaik, head of neurosurgery at the trauma centre, said the chances of patient’s survival are negligible. “She has severe diffused axonal injury in the brain. There is hypoxic brain damage, which means supply of oxygen to the brain is minimal. There is no motor response and pupil reaction. The injury is non-operable. She has been put on all important life-support systems,” he said.
Post mortem on 10 bodies was conducted at Arni while one post mortem was done at Yavatmal GMCH. All the 11 bodies were handed over to the relatives who took them to Nagpur in three ambulances provided by the Nanded based Gurdwara Trust.
It is learnt, eight bodies were embalmed in Nagpur and taken to their native places. The three deceased from Nagpur, Shradha alias Dimple Mali, Simran Mali and SUV driver Vikas Bhoyer were cremated in the city.
Police have booked the truck driver under sections 337, 338, 304 (A) and 279 of IPC and launched a manhunt for him. Sources in Arni police station said the driver fled with the registration book and other documents of the truck.
The philanthropists from Arni collected over Rs50,000 to meet the expenses of the transportation of the dead bodies to their respective villages.
“There is no trauma care centre or hospital within 100km of the accident spot,” alleged Promod Kudale of Prahar Janshakti Party of Bachhu Kadu.
MLC from Arni, Kwaja Baig, said that he has been demanding a trauma care centre in Arni for the last two years.