Eight killed as bus falls into gorge

Seven final year engineering students were among eight persons killed and 30 others injured when their bus fell into a gorge at Thekkinkanam in the district today.
The driver was among those killed.
The students, belonging to the final year batch of the Electronics and Instrumentation branch at the Sarabhai Institute of Science and Technology at Vellanad in Thiruvananthapuram, were on their way to Munnar from Kodaikanal on a picnic when the mishap occurred, police said.
The injured have been hospitalised.
Police said the group included 28 boys, 13 girls and four others including the driver.
According to preliminary reports, the bus fell into the gorge after the driver lost control while negotiating a hairpin curve at Thekkinkanam near Rajakkad.