Twenty-five people escaped death when the bus they were travelling in tumbled and fell into a river seven kilometres from Nausori Town on Wednesday, August 14, 1985.
An article published by The Fiji Times on Thursday reported on August 15, 1985, a 65-seater bus, owned by Sharma Buses Ltd in Nausori, was on its usual trip from Baulevu to Suva when it fell seven metres from the Kasavu Bridge.
It said women and children screamed and called for help as the planks on the left side of the bridge broke and the bus tumbled slowly into the creek.
The driver of the bus, Bal Krishna, 40, of Nausori, described the ordeal as the most terrifying minutes of his life.
“It’s a miracle that none of the passengers were killed or seriously hurt,” Mr Krishna said.
“I couldn’t believe it was happening to me. I have never been involved in an accident before.”
He said he had been driving for the company for about 25 years.
Nearly all the passengers suffered cuts and bruises. They were treated at the Nausori Health Centre and the Colonial War Memorial Hospital in Suva and sent home.
Mr Krishna suffered cuts on his forehead and thighs and bruises on his cheeks.
He said at 8.45am, as he drove onto the bridge, he felt the bus being pulled to the right side of the bridge.
“I steered it to the left and heard the sound of wood breaking,” Mr Krishna said.
“The next minute, the bus was over-turning, and I could hear shouts and terrifying screams.
“Some women were trapped under the seats, and some were too frightened to move from their places.
“There were one or two students in the bus who hit their heads on seats and other parts of the bus during the fall.”
Mr Krishna said with the help of villagers, they smashed the windscreen and took the passengers out one by one.
