Navy convoy hits civilian vehicle, seven injured

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 July 2006, 13:10 GMT]
Seven civilians including a foreign woman married to a Sri Lankan were injured when a bus carrying sailors in Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) convoy crashed into their multi-passenger vehicle which was parked along the Inner Harbour Road in Trincomalee town to give way to the convoy. The accident took place Thursday evening around 4:00 p.m., police sources said.

The convoy was coming from Colombo to the Trincomalee naval headquarters located inside the Dockyard.

The damaged vehicle, belonging to a Christian society, was parked on the roadside near the provincial education ministry office on the orders of the security personnel providing security to the convoy until the convoy passed through the road, sources said

However one of the buses in the convoy which was being driven at high speed suddenly swerved on to the side of the parked vehicle and crashed into the vehicle. The vehicle was severely damaged and all the seven civilians in the vehicle were injured.

All were taken to the Trincomalee general hospital. Three of them including the foreign woman and two others were transferred to the Colombo general hospital as their conditions were critical, medical sources said.