Wardha (Maharashtra), Jul 20 (PTI) Five persons were killed in a collision between a car and a truck on Samruddhi Expressway in Maharashtra’s Wardha district early on Monday, police said.
The accident occurred at around 3 am near Virul village, disrupting traffic movement on the Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Expressway.
A container truck carrying ethanol overturned near an interchange (IC 80) on the expressway, completely blocking traffic in the Mumbai-to-Nagpur direction. Subsequently, a truck collided with the rear of a car at the same location, a senior police official said.
Five persons were killed in the incident, the official said.
Teams from the Highway Safety Patrol, Wardha Police, fire brigade, and the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation rushed to the spot for rescue and traffic restoration operations.
Since the overturned container was carrying highly flammable ethanol, it was necessary to empty it first before its safe removal. The operation was underway with utmost caution to ensure public safety, the official said.
Traffic on the Mumbai–Nagpur carriageway was being diverted to the opposite lane, causing heavy congestion along the affected stretch.
Police also advised motorists travelling from Nagpur to Mumbai to avoid using the Samruddhi Expressway up to Wardha for the next few hours. They urged people to use the Nagpur-Amravati highway and rejoin the expressway through the Amravati gate interchange.
Efforts were underway to facilitate the safe clearance of the accident site. PTI COR CLS VT GK
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