Five Buried Alive as Truck Carrying Sand Turns Over
Patna: Aug. 20, 2007
In a freak, yet tragic incident, a truck loaded with sand at the northwestern end of Gandhi Maidan in Patna at the wee hours on Monday morning night turned over burying five men alive under the sand while sending six others to hospitals, the police in Patna said.
As reported, the truck carrying sand that it picked up in Koilwar was going to Muzaffarpur. On its way, it picked up passengers in Bihta and Maner - most of them vegetable vendors – who sat on the top of sand while some others sat on the top of the truck cabin.
At around 2:45 am, the truck somehow got stuck in a ditch near the A. N. Sinha Institute and turned over dumping tons of sand on the road.
Unfortunately, most men on the truck except the driver and his aide, were sleeping at the time the accident happened leaving them no opportunity to jump out and save their lives.
While five men were buried alive in the pile of sand, six others managed to pull themselves out of the sand but not before sustaining serious injuries. All of them were sent to the Patna Medical College Hospital (PMCH) where two were said to be in critical conditions.
The deceased were identified as Shankar Sah of Sadishopur, Jitu Yadav and Manoj Mahto of Bihta, Mahesh Sah of Kulharia, and Basant Sah of Maner.
Both the driver and his assistance were said to be absconding.
Unofficial reports, however, said the truck driver was trying to evade a police patrolling vehicle when it lost control and turned over.
The traffic police are investigating the case.
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