Raigad (Maharashtra): At least five persons were killed and another 27 injured when a private luxury bus carrying a marriage party lost control and overturned in the Tamhini Ghat section of Raigad district on Friday, officials said.

The bus, owned by Purple Travels, was headed from Lohegaon in Pune district to Birwadi village in Mahad (Raigad) carrying people going to attend a marriage ceremony when the disaster struck. The victims include three women and two men, while the injured have been rushed to the Mangaon Rural Hospital and other medicare facilities in Raigad.

The fatalities include Sangita Dhananjay Jadhav, Vandana Jadhav, Shilpa Pradeep Pawar, Gaurav Ashok Darade and another unidentified male member who was part of the wedding team of the Jadhav clan.

According to preliminary information, the bus was speeding from Lohegaon to Birwadi in the ghat sections, but while negotiating a sharp curve on the highway, the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle. Moments later, around 9.30 a.m. the bus toppled to the sides on the sloping route, overturned, and crashed beside the road as many of the injured occupants screamed for help.

Some local villagers and others rushed to render assistance and informed the Mangaon Police which also reached the spot with rescue teams and medical aid, plus cleared the traffic. Many of the injured victims were trapped inside the bus and were taken out by the rescuers and shifted to hospital, while five of them had succumbed instantly in the accident, said an official of Mangaon Police Station.

During the rescue operation, the survivors attired in their wedding finery were seen sitting beside the highway, wailing at the shocking tragedy and loss of lives of their near and dear ones, all bound for an auspicious marriage function, which turned into a tearful affair. (IANS)