10 died, 17 injured after bus accident

SURAT THANI, THAILAND, July 3 (TNA) - Ten people, including an Indian, died and 17 injured early Tuesday after a tour bus accidentally hit a high-powered electricity pole in the southern province of Surat Thani, police said. The accident occurred before dawn when the front tyre of the tour bus operated by state-run Transport Co., Ltd. burst, causing the bus which was running at high speed to lose control and hit the electricity pole on the road side, police said. Nine passengers -- four men and five women -- and the driver died at the scene of the accident. The Indian passenger who was killed in the accident was identified as Amit Jain. Police said the 17 injured passengers were later sent to two hospitals for treatment. The tour bus left Bangkok and was heading for Koh Phangan in Surat Thani province when the accident took place. (TNA)