Orissa Maoists blow up ambulance, 5 killed

At least five people, including a woman and a child, were killed on Saturday night after the Maoists triggered an IED blast that blew up an ambulance in Kandhamal district of Orissa, police said on Sunday.

“Of the five there is a small child and a woman. The rebels used an improvised explosive device (IED) to trigger the explosion when the vehicle was crossing a culvert,” Orissa Director General of Police Manmohan Praharaj told IBNS.

The incident occurred around 1135 pm on Saturday night at Brahmanigaon area of Kandhamal, about 300 km from here, he said.

The dead woman was a health worker, police said.

The ambulance was on its way from Gadapur to Brahmanigaon when the explosion took place.

Orissa is one of the worst Maoist hit eastern state where the rebels expanded their hold in southern and north-west districts while Kandhamal is in central part of the state bordering other rebel hit southern districts like Ganjam and Gajapati.