The police on Wednesday said that a 28-year-old driver from Punjab was burnt to death, and a cleaner sustained serious injuries after their tempo caught fire on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway in Maharashtra`s Palghar district, reported news agency PTI.
The incident, which affected traffic on the busy carriageway, occurred around 10:30 pm on Tuesday on the Gujarat-bound lane near Somta.
According to the Palghar rural police, a tempo was in motion when a fire broke out, quickly engulfing the entire vehicle.
“The intensity of the blaze was so severe that it killed the tempo driver, Jawan Singh, and gutted the materials being transported in the vehicle,” a police official said, reported PTI.
Cleaner Gurusewak Singh (38), also a resident of Punjab, managed to escape the burning vehicle but sustained serious burns, he said, reported PTI.
“The injured cleaner was rushed to the sub-district hospital for treatment, while the driver`s body has been sent to the government hospital for a post-mortem,” the Palghar rural police added.
The fire disrupted traffic on the busy highway for several hours as fire brigade personnel worked to douse the flames.
The police have registered a case of accidental death in connection with the accident. “An investigation is currently underway to determine the exact cause of the fire,” the police official added.
Biscuit-laden container truck overturns in Thane; no casualties
In another incident, a container truck transporting biscuits overturned on a highway in Maharashtra`s Thane district in the early hours of Tuesday, an official said.
No one was injured in the accident that occurred on the Nashik-Mumbai Highway at Kalwa around 4 am, the official said.
“The driver of the container truck lost control of the vehicle on a bend near Kharegaon Toll Plaza, causing it to overturn,” said Yasin Tadvi, chief of the disaster management cell.
The vehicle was heading towards Nhava Sheva in Navi Mumbai carrying around 20 tonnes of biscuits, he said.
The vehicle`s diesel tank developed a leak, and the fuel spilt onto the road, but steps were taken to prevent any untoward incident, he said.
The damaged vehicle was later moved with the help of a crane, and the highway was cleared for traffic, he added.
(With inputs from PTI)
