Four killed, five injured in road accident

Four persons, including a 31-year-old pregnant female were killed and five others injured due to a head-on collision between a Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) bus and a van at Yatigalpottha in Galewela along the Dambulla-Kurunegala main road at around 5.30am today (2). 

The SLTB bus had been traveling from Kekirawa to Colombo and belonged to the Dambulla SLTB depot. The van had been carrying a group of pilgrims to a Mass at the Maduruoya Catholic Church. 

All those killed were inside the van. The dead included a 31-year-old pregnant woman, her four-year-old son, and a 60-year-old female identified as the pregnant woman's Mother-in-Law. The van's driver, aged 21 years, was also killed. The five injured persons were admitted to the Dambulla hospital. They include four family members of the deceased passengers, and a passenger traveling in the SLTB bus. 

Three of the injured were in critical condition and steps have been taken to transfer them to other hospitals for further treatment, a hospital spokesman said. 

The driver of the bus has been arrested by Galewela police. Investigations are ongoing. 

Story and Pix by Kanchana Kumara Ariyadasa

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