19 Killed As Container Falls On Kerala-bound Bus In Tiruppur

25 passengers injured; police say truck driver fell asleep at the wheel

- R. Akileish

Nineteen people on board a Kerala State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus were killed when a 30-tonne truck hit the central median of the National Highway and the container it was carrying fell on the bus on the outskirts of Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu early on Thursday.

The accident occurred near Avinashi on NH 544 connecting Salem and Kochi. Police said the bus was plying from Bengaluru to Ernakulam. Around 3.15 a.m., the truck carrying imported tiles from the Kochi port hit the central median, which was about a foot high, on the six-lane highway and entered the opposite lane.