4 charred to death as truck catches fire after multi-vehicle accident in Pune

Four persons, including a minor, were charred to death and two others sustained injuries after a truck caught fire following a multi-vehicle accident on Monday near Navale bridge on the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway in Pune, police and fire brigade officials said.

The incident took place near Swaminarayan Temple at around 9 pm, resulting in four deaths and injuries to two others, Sinhgad Road police station senior inspector Abhay Mahajan said.

"A truck, carrying corn stover (remnants after corn harvest), was going from Sangli to Gujarat. When the truck came to Swaminarayan Temple Chowk, the driver lost control and the vehicle hit another truck, which toppled. The vehicle carrying corn stover then rear-ended a container truck," he said.

"The impact was so powerful that the truck carrying corn stover caught fire and the driver's cabin was mangled. Of the six occupants in the cabin, four were charred to death after getting trapped inside, while two were injured and have been hospitalised," Mahajan said.

Pune Municipal Corporation chief fire officer Devendra Potphode said the incident took place around 9 pm and the blaze was doused after multiple fire tenders and water tankers were deployed.

The police and fire brigade personnel are in the process of clearing the road and traffic has been diverted to alternate routes, Deputy Commissioner of Police ( Zone III) Suhail Sharma said.

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