Hazaribagh: Five people were killed, and 16 others were injured in a major road accident in the Danua Valley under the Chauparan police station area of Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh district on Monday, after a passenger vehicle collided with a trailer on the Grand Trunk Road, officials said.
The accident occurred near the Mahanetand cut, close to Hathiya Baba. Several of the injured are reported to be in critical condition, while eight were referred to Hazaribagh for advanced treatment after receiving initial medical attention at the Chauparan Community Health Centre.
According to police, the passenger vehicle was carrying people from Atka, Biharo and Salaiya villages in the Bagodar block of Giridih district. They were travelling to Varanasi to perform the last rites of a relative.
Preliminary information suggests that the body was being transported on the roof of the vehicle. When the vehicle reached the Mahanetand cut, the rope securing the body reportedly loosened. The passengers stopped the vehicle by the roadside to tighten it.
Meanwhile, a speeding trailer approaching from behind rammed into the stationary passenger vehicle. The impact was so severe that five people died on the spot, while several others sustained injuries.
The trailer driver allegedly fled the scene with the vehicle after the collision. Further, a coal-laden truck coming from behind hit the vehicles involved in the crash and overturned into the valley along the roadside.
Soon after receiving information, Chauparan Police Station in-charge Pankaj Kumar and a police team reached the spot. With assistance from local residents, police personnel, and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) ambulances, the injured were shifted to the Chauparan Community Health Centre.
After preliminary treatment, eight seriously injured people were referred to Hazaribagh. The 1033 highway helpline and ambulance services were also pressed into the rescue and relief operation.
A large number of relatives and local residents gathered at the hospital following the accident. Police sent the bodies of the deceased for postmortem examination.
An investigation is underway to establish the circumstances leading to the accident and identify the trailer driver who fled the spot.
(IANS)
