4 killed as petrol tanker overturns on Pune-Mumbai Expressway

4 killed as petrol tanker overturns on Pune-Mumbai Expressway

Four people were killed and three were seriously injured when a truck carrying methane overturned and spilled the highly dangerous and flammable liquid on the Mumbai-Pune highway near Lonavala around 11.40 am on Tuesday, officials said.

According to a Pune Rural Police officer, the accident occurred on an overbridge near Lonavala, a hill station. Examiners are figuring out what caused the accident. 

The local fire department officials and medical personnel were immediately informed about the incident and firemen rushed to douse the fire. They also provided medical assistance to the accident victims.

Traffic was halted from 11.40 am to 12.40 pm by the Highway Safety Patrol on both sides of the expressway as the tanker was fully engulfed in flames. Officials said small vehicles were diverted through the Kandala exit.

Emergency rescue teams from Pune Rural Police, Highway Safety Patrol, Expressway Emergency Response System, Pune Disaster Management Unit, Fire Brigades of Lonavala and Kopoli Municipal Councils, and Indian Navy's Lonavala-based training center INS Shivaji were involved in the relief operation.

Lonavala police station in-charge Inspector Sitaram Dubal says, “At first we thought it was an oil tanker. Investigation revealed that it contained methanol. Of the four dead, one was in the tanker cabin and the rest were in the vehicles that went down the bridge. Two of the three injured were in the tanker cabin and one was in the vehicle below.

#WATCH | Maharashtra: Four people died and three were injured when an oil tanker caught fire after it met with an accident on the Lonavala overbridge on the Mumbai-Pune expressway pic.twitter.com/lKyhNORm97

— ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2023

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted, “My heartfelt condolences to the 4 people who lost their lives in the unfortunate accident. 3 people were injured in this incident and are undergoing treatment at the hospital. I pray for their speedy recovery.”