Guntur: Seven people, including three women and a child, were killed and 15 others sustained injuries, four of them critically, when a rented Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) bus they were traveling in lost control and plunged into the Sagar Canal near Dharshi in Prakasam district on Monday midnight.

According to the police, the occupants of the bus, consisting of 47 people, including two drivers, were en route to Kakinada from Podali to attend a wedding reception when the accident occurred.

The severity of the accident could have been mitigated due to low water levels in the canal.

The injured were immediately transported to a nearby government hospital, while those in critical condition were shifted to RIMS Hospital in Ongole.

The deceased have been identified as Abdul Aziz (65), Abdul Hani (60), Sheikh Rameez (48), Mulla Noorzan (58), Mulla Jani Begum (65), Sheikh Shabeena (35), and Sheikh Heema (7).

A case has been registered, and an investigation is underway, added the police.

(With UNI inputs)