Four Dead in Bus Collision

By The Irrawaddy 27 July 2017

YANGON — Four people were killed in a bus collision on the Yangon-Pathein highway in Pantanaw Township of Irrawaddy Region on Wednesday afternoon, local police confirmed to The Irrawaddy.

A Ye Aung Lan highway bus driving from Rakhine State’s Thandwe Township to Yangon collided head-on with a Saydanar Shin express coach when the Ye Aung Lan bus tried to overtake another coach, according to the police official.

The Saydanar Shin coach driver and three other passengers on the same bus were killed instantly, said the official, adding that 13 passengers are receiving treatment at Pantanaw General Hospital.

Staff at Pantanaw General Hospital confirmed they had received several patients from a traffic accident, although they did not give an exact number.

The Irrawaddy was directed to call the hospital manager, but could not reach the manager for further comment.

Police have launched investigations into the crash under Penal Code sections 304(a) for causing death by negligence, 337 and 338 for causing hurt and grievous hurt by an act endangering the safety of others.

Locals wrote on social media that the two-lane highway is too narrow to overtake vehicles if there is a car in the opposite lane.