2 killed, 2 seriously injured in early morning truck, trailer, MUV collision on Mumbai-Pune Expressway

Navi Mumbai: A truck driver and his assistant were killed, while two others, including an elderly woman in a multi-utility vehicle (MUV) and the driver of a container trailer, were severely injured in a collision on the Mumbai carriageway of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway near the Khopoli exit around 4.10 am on Monday.The fatal accident occurred after the truck containing a rice consignment lost control on the downward gradient of the Bhor ghat near Dheku village near the Khopoli exit and crashed into the rear of the container trailer loaded with edible oil tins. Due to the impact, the trailer driver too lost control and in turn hit an MUV moving ahead. The truck toppled sideways after grazing the peripheral safety wall.Police inspector Sachin Hire of Khopoli police station said, “The deceased truck driver was identified as Arvind Kumar Rangrao Allu (44) and his assistant as Shiva Bhukka, both hailing from Andhra Pradesh. They were declared brought dead at the Khopoli sub-district hospital. The MUV occupant, Neelabai Saste (76), the grandmother of the MUV driver Saurabh Saste (26), was the only occupant of the vehicle to have sustained a major injury and was admitted to MGM Hospital, Kamothe. Saurabh, his wife Vaishnavi (23) and his father Mukinda (56) escaped unhurt. The Saste family was returning to their Kharghar residence after visiting their native place in Satara. Even the driver of the container trailer, identified as Mahendra Kumar Pal (39), sustained severe injuries after the trailer toppled and he too was admitted to the Khopoli sub-district hospital.”The spillage of edible oil from the toppled container trailer spread on the four lanes of the Mumbai carriageway, causing disruption in vehicular movement towards Mumbai for more than an hour. Cars headed towards Mumbai via the Connecting Link were halted about 6.5 km from the accident spot in the vicinity of the Food Plaza. To decongest the Expressway, the cars headed towards Mumbai were gradually diverted along one lane of the Pune carriageway, till the heavy vehicles were towed away and the rice sacks from the truck that fell on the road and spilled edible oil were cleared, said police inspector Sachin Hire of Khopoli police station. Acting on a complaint by the MUV driver, an FIR was registered against the deceased truck driver under BNS and IT Act for rash and negligent driving causing death.Khopoli police and Highway Safety Patrol (HSP) cops engaged a hydraulic crane to lift and tow away the two toppled HMVs to clear the way. To prevent skidding of vehicles due to the spilled edible oil, the teams of HSP and Khopoli police, with the assistance of IRB agency, members of an NGO Help Foundation, Delta Force and Devdoot Rescue team, cleaned the four lanes by sprinkling dust to prevent skidding of vehicles.