Kakinada: An RTC bus en route from Visakhapatnam to Rajamahendravaram struck and killed four individuals near the Padalamma Thalli temple on the national highway between Prathipadu and Chinnampeta in the early hours of Monday. According to Prathipadu circle inspector M. Sekhar Babu, the victims included two lorry drivers - Dasari Prasad and Nagayya - and a lorry cleaner named Dasari Kishore.
They were changing the tyre of their lorry when the RTC hit them. Simultaneously, Lova Raju, providing service to the Padalamma Thalli Temple, was hit by the bus as well, after which it fled the scene. The police intercepted the bus at Bommuru near Rajamahendravaram, detaining the bus driver, P.S. Rao.
The driver claimed that fear of the nearby crowd compelled him to continue driving, expressing his intention to inform the authorities. Prathipadu police has booked a case and initiated probe, revealing that the deceased drivers and cleaner were residents of Nakka Bokkala Palem village in Bapatla district. Lova Raju, hearing impaired individual from Visakhapatnam, had been residing at the temple for the past five years.
RTC bus depot manager Shaik Shabnam conveyed that a departmental inquiry would be launched into the incident. She attributed the unfortunate accident to driver’s drowsiness.
Shabnam, along with Yeleswaram RTC bus depot manager S. Satyanarayana, Rajamahendravaram assistant manager M. Ajay Babu, security inspector G. Ramakrishna and others visited the accident site.
