HYDERABAD: Two persons were killed and two others were seriously injured near Miyapur in the wee hours of Wednesday as the tyres of the car burst and it rammed a wayside hotel. The incident occurred at around 3.50 a.m. in front of Lakshmi Vilas hotel at Deepthisree Nagar colony here.
The deceased were identified as Chetari Srikanth (29) and his mother Padmavathi (52). Padmavathi’s daughters B Anitha (34) and Kalyani (32) suffered severe injuries and were hospitalised whereas, their children Sai Karthik(9), Sri Tanush(5), B Sanjana (13), Yogitha (13) and a relative Nagarani (42) escaped unhurt. According to the police, the front tyre on the right hand side of Maruti car burst and the driver lost control of the vehicle before it rammed into a hotel.
The duo died on the spot. Based on a complaint by Durgaiah, a BHEL employee and head of the family, a case has been registered under Section 304 A of the IPC on charges of causing death by negligence. The family resides at BHEL quarters in Chandanagar. “Srikanth was driving the car and the family were returning home from a wedding reception in DRDL, Kanchanbagh early in the morning. The cause of accident is a tyre burst,” said Raghu Babu, sub- inspector of Miyapur police.
Faulty Tyre is More Dangerous than Accident
Call it indifference or negligence, a faulty tyre can be more deadlier than an accident. A tyre burst can happen veryfrequently considering the bad roads, traffic movements,weather and above all the lackadaisical attitude towards maintenance. Following Wednesday morning’s accident caused due to a tyre burst, Express spoke to a few tyre experts to find out what causes a tyre burst and how significant it is to maintain the tyres. Any branded tyre that has traveled 30,000 km calls for a replacement. “Of the many reasons, a tyre burst could take place if the driver ignores any air bubbles on the tyre. Once any wobbling is felt while driving, one should change the tyre regardless of how old the tyre is,” said Ali at a puncture shop on Raj Bhavan road. Manufacturing defects on the tyres could be another reason, he added. He said one should check the air and pressure in wheels at least once a week. “if the stitching on the inside tubes weakens, the pressure in the tyre may bloat. One should look out for any cracks, cuts, nicks etc on the tyre,”he pointed out. Tyres may also become brittle when exposed to water for a long time. A front tyre blast is, however, more dangerous according to him. “The steering becomes locked with the front tyre blast. One would not be able to manoeuvr. Highways make it more deadly as one drives fast,” he added. The rates of tyres differ based on the brand, pattern of treading, quality etc. A car tyre costs around Rs 4,000.