Most of the Mysore accident victims were women & children

Twenty-nine persons, including 24 women and four children, drowned after a mini-lorry plunged into a lake near Mandakali airport on the outskirts of Mysore city on Tuesday evening, police said. Four persons have been rescued. One person is missing.

Police said about 60 persons from Paduvarahalli suburb in Mysore were returning after a marriage from a village near Nanjangud in three vehicles, when one of them carrying at least 34 persons, fell into the Unda Bathikere. The lorry plunged into the  lake after the driver lost control of the vehicle while trying to avoid a pothole.

According to witnesses, the lorry swerved to the left before falling into the lake on Mysore-Nanjangud Road, about 10 km from Mysore. The deceased persons belonged to Pandavapura in Mandya district. Inspector-general of police (southern range) KSN Murthy said the death toll could be pegged at 29 as two women and the driver and cleaner of the vehicle were rescued.

“We cannot say how many more bodies have to be fished out. At present, we don’t have the victims’ details,” he said.
However, unconfirmed reports said four women were rescued from the lake and the driver and cleaner could not be found.

“The lake is on one side of a serpentine road, which has witnessed several accidents. There are  humps on both ends of the road that is mostly ridden with potholes, causing mechanical problems for vehicles,” HM Nagendra, a native of Nanjangud, said.

The bodies, fished out from the lake, were shifted to KR Hospital for post-mortem, which would be conducted after identifying the dead. Minister for medical education SA Ramdas, also in-charge of Mysore district, rushed to the spot and supervised rescue and relief operations. Chief minister BS Yeddyurappa announced an ex-gratia of Rs1 lakh to the bereaved families and Rs50,000 to the injured.