CHENNAI: A driver was killed and more than five passengers sustained grievous injuries after a speeding tipper lorry rammed a Chennai-bound private omnibus on the Tiruchy-Chennai National Highway at Palaveli near Chengalpattu on Tuesday.
As many as 20 passengers were on board the bus when the M-sand-laden lorry crashed into its rear. The impact was so severe that the lorry tore through the bus before overturning, according to police sources.
The man, who was the second driver assigned to the bus, had been resting inside the bus when the accident occurred, killing him on the spot. The Chengalpattu Taluk police rushed more than five injured passengers to the Chengalpattu Government Hospital.
The lorry driver fled the scene after the accident. The police said the deceased driver’s identity is yet to be established because no family member has come forward to lodge a complaint. Further investigation is under way.
Meanwhile, in a separate hit-and-run case on Monday night, a 50-year-old man was killed after a speeding car hit his two-wheeler on the East Coast Road (ECR) at Neelankarai. The victim, identified as K Raju, was declared brought dead at the Government Royapettah Hospital.
The police said residents, alleging a delay in securing the suspect, staged a road blockade on the ECR for nearly an hour. The Adyar Traffic Investigation Wing police pacified the protesters, arrested the car driver, S Sasikumar (28), and booked him under Section 106(1) of the BNS.