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It was a 19 year old who drove van ... responsible for 10 deaths!
10 persons of relatives of 3 families died in the accident between bus - van which occured this morning at Mahiyangana which incidentally attracted attention of the whole country and at the time of the mishap it was a 19 year old young boy who had been at the steering-wheel of the van concerned and police inquiries reveal that he too passed away.
The 3 families have got together and had arranged to meet their relatives for the holidays and have
been to a relative's home in Ja ela area and were proceeding to their houses in Batticaloa when the van was subjected to this accident.
been to a relative's home in Ja ela area and were proceeding to their houses in Batticaloa when the van was subjected to this accident.
Those who were within the van were a grandfather and grandmother and couples who incidentally were their children and two 4 year old twin daughters. Another 10 year old niece and a 19 year old nephew were among the dead. It was this 19 year old nephew named Prince Hendricks who was at the driving-seat at the moment of this crash. It was mentioned that he was a less-experienced driver who managed to get his driving license after finishing his studies.
The private bus which was heading from Diyatalawa to Trincomalee was parked at the boutique close to Mahiyangana Maha Vidyalaya situated along Mahiyangana - Badulla route around 1.00 in the morning in order for the passengers to take a rest. Subsequently, the moment the crowd were collected to board the bus at about 1.30 and had started to set off ... this unexpected tragic event has taken place.
The bus driver and passengers have explained howa van had all of a sudden barged into the road and had crashed on to the front part of the bus, ending up in a tragic accident. The driver has added that it was seen that the said van was being driven with a distorted memory as such. What police suspect is that the young man who was at the wheel has fallen asleep. The van which crashed right into the middle part of the bus appeared to have sunk into the vehicle. Bodies of everybody who travelled at the front of the van were found totally twisted ... thus ending in death. Lives of the two female children travelling in the rear seat escaped death; but have sustained severe injuries.
The two girls are presently undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit of Badulla General Hospital. Though the driver of the bus was taken into custody after this fateful accident according to legal provisions, it is the opinion of witnesses that the entire fault of the accident lies on the person who was driving the van. Those who died are relatives living at three locations in Batticaloa while one of the injured girls is a resident of Ja ela.
Previous article about the incident:
