MUMBAI: An 11-year-old boy died and four other students sustained minor injuries after a roadside peepal tree was uprooted and crashed onto a school bus of Universal High School in Chembur on Tuesday afternoon. The incident occurred near Heritage Pride on Road No. 11 at around 3 pm when the tree fell on a Make Force school bus (MH03/CV-7439) carrying 13 students. The bus attendant, with the help of local residents, safely evacuated all the children before firefighters reached the spot. Personnel from the Mumbai Fire Brigade, police, BMC ward staff, and a 108 ambulance were mobilised for the rescue operation. All five injured students were taken to Zen Hospital. According to BMC officials, four students sustained minor injuries and are in stable condition. The fifth student, Vihaan Srivastava (10), suffered serious injuries and is undergoing treatment. The uprooted tree damaged the bus and briefly disrupted traffic in the area. Civic officials later removed the tree and cleared the road. Zen Hospital doctors said the 11-year-old boy was brought dead. The medical team attempted to resuscitate him for 30 minutes. He had head injuries, abdominal injuries, and fractures. He was the oldest among the injured students. There are four other children, aged between 5 and 10, at the hospital. Doctors said none of them had severe life-threatening injuries. Two underwent CT scans of their abdomen and spine. One of the four is scheduled to undergo a minor procedure on his hand.
