Here's an accident that was a close shave for a family of four.
This accident was caused by sheer negligence from parents who handed over thier NHC to be driven by their 14 year old son in the bandipur forest roads.
It was the 26th of Dec' and we(wifey and me) were on our way to Wayanad to visit our relatives and also for some shopping for a cousin whoz wedding was to be solemnized on the 3rd of Jan.
We left Mysore by about 11am, the drive was pleasant and uneventful. Stopped over at Coffee Day in Gundlupet for a quick bite and a cuppa, with our bellies half full we hit the road to reach Wayanad for lunch which was being prepared at home.
Entered the forest range,wifey was keen on spotting wildlife and hence was stirctly asked to drive slow.
Well I had just gifted her with a Fuji Finepix S2000 HD camera for christmas.I had to oblige though the roads were pretty inviting and since this was her 1st ever trip to Wayanad I simply had no chance to say no to anything.
15kms into the forest and I see a white skoda blasting straight into us on the wrong lane over-taking a cab, I never gave way and the moron, he just swerves in time to avoid my car. I slow down and use the choicest of abuses against the mad-man driving the skoda and continued our journey.
Another km or so and I see a NHC crashed into a tree,with a few cars stopped around helping the victims.
Here are 2 pics and this is all I have ....
A brief insight into what went wrong here as narrated by the mother of the kids..
The family is on a leisure trip to Wayanad to spend their christmas hols.Dad hands over the car to the son who is doing his 10th since the forest roads are empty.The confident son at the wheels was enjoying his drive when all of a sudden a white skoda(which drove into us earlier) comes out of nowhere. Therez a lorry broken down on the right side of the road and while the NHC flashes light asking for the right of way, the skoda driver thinks he can squeeze thru the parked truck and the oncoming NHC.
Apparently the skoda makes it thru but the kid at the wheel panics and veers to the left side of the road only crash into a mile stone which launches the car straight into a tree.
Well we reach the spot maybe in about 5 mins or so since the accident to see a profusely bleeding dad and mom , son(driver) with a dislocated jaw and the youngest lad was fine.
The driver had worn seat belts and hence only took a minor hit, the father wasn't wearing his seat belts and went straight into the dashboard/windshield. The mom who was sitting behind the driver his the B-pillar and has a badly bleeding forehead coz of the impact.
We pull over and I head over the check if they need any help from us, only to realize that both the parents need immediate medical attention. A good Samaritan driving a Merc to Bangalore offers to drive back to Wayanad and get them to a hospital.No-one else budges to help the victims and then I have a chat with the driver of the Merc and suggest that we stop another car and get the victims to a hospital ASAP. I asked the fella to continue with his drive to bangy than come back to Wayanad.
Time to act fast since the lady is bleeding badly from her forehead and no time to waste.We (the merc driver and myself) manage to stop a Tavera heading to Calicut. They offer to drive 2 of them till Sultan Bathery and the other 2 in our car with their luggage.Make a dash and collect all the documents from their car and we are off.
We are just about 5kms from the Karantaka border check post and from here on its Kerala territory. No coverage to call up anyone and find out about a hospital. Once we reach Muthanaga I call my cousin who guides me to Vinayaka Hospital in Sultan Bathery.
Reach the hospital and we are told both the parents wounds needs to be stitched up.In the meanwhile a doc' comes up with a theory saying that a compliant needs to be lodged with the local police and only then will they be able to provide more medical attention. From his mallu accent I realize he isnt from Kerala and ask him about his origin.
The imbecile says Mysore, I ask him "
Kannada channagi baruthalla ? "
Reply was instantenous "
Hoon barutthe" . Spoke to him in our very own "
Suvarna kannada"(read choicest of words) and asked him where was his medical ethics about providing first aid to an accident victim.
I asked him how much do you know about the law and informed him that the car was in Karnataka and since it wasn't being brought into Kerala why does a complaint need to be lodged in Kerala ? By then a few people also had gathered around to find out what the ruckus was all about.The crowd then went on to say provide first aid to the victim. The doc' simply walked away and I left my visiting card on his table and asked him to call me once he reaches mysore.I haven't heard from him since then.
Meanwhile the parents are taken to the OT and their wounds stitched up. Some sorta scan was done since the dad of the kids wasn't really responding properly to any questions asked. Maybe due the shock of the accident and I could sense it that he couldn't comprehend when something was asked.
Few calls to my rel's and tell them we will be late and spend the rest of the afternoon at the hospital till about 4 pm with the family. Once both the parents are bought back , we hand over their luggage and belongings. Speak to security guy and ask him to arrange for a taxi to help them get to their guest house in Sulthan Battery and bid adieu to the family.
The dad couldn't speak or even utter a word since he his lower lip was badly bruised and that it was stitched and bandaged.Left my number with the mother and said our goodbye's and left.
The drive back was pretty uneventful and all thru, I was just wondering what if the same thing had happened to us and no-one was willing to help ?
This was exactly what this family went thru, no-one wanted to take them to a hospital and help them until I reached the place. The Merc driver also came forward only after I said lets get them to a hospital.
Whatever I went back a happy man and everyone home were really happy and glad that we helped the family.
The next day the lady called back and thanked us saying that they had got back to Bangalore and their car also was being towed back.
Yesterday I spoke to the dad of the kids and he said the car was a write off and that everyone's doing fine.
I know most of you chaps agree on helping accident victims, if you haven't done it please do. It doesn't cost you anything and trust me you really feel good about it at the end of the day.