VISAKHAPATNAM: The residents of Vadlapudi near Gajuwaka thronged the flyover in the vicinity on Tuesday morning after a milk supply tanker of around 16,000-litre capacity overturned.
The milk tanker, carrying the morning supply from Pithapuram in East Godavari district to Vizag, overturned after its driver T Appalnaidu dozed off behind the wheel and lost control.
According to eye witnesses, the vehicle, after breaking the side railings, fell from a height of around 40 feet into a bushy dumping yard and overturned.
The driver escaped with some minor injury as he managed to jump off the vehicle in the nick of time before the tanker hit the ground. Hearing the thud, the locals rushed to the spot and rescued the driver. But having realised that there was no loss of life, they immediately ran to their houses and returned with vessels, buckets and other containers.
They jostled their way to collect the milk spilling out of the tanker. Upon information, the Visakha Dairy staff reached the spot and shifted the injured driver to a private hospital nearby. “The dairy staff brought an empty tanker and pumped out the remaining stock from the mangled vehicle,” Gajuwaka CI Immanuel Raj said after inquiry. Police have registered a case and investigation is on. It is learnt that the driver, after being administered first-aid, was released from the hospital.