MANGALURU: Vehicles plying on the Bengaluru-Mangaluru Highway through Charmadi Ghat were stuck on the road for about three hours after a truck overturned at the tenth bend. The accident occurred around 7.30 am and vehicular movement almost came to a halt till about 10:30 am.
“While cars could manoeuvre and slowly go past the spot, many buses tried to squeeze through the bend and blocked the path for other light vehicles,” said Riyan, a local, who was helping out with clearing the traffic.
Locals, who had witnessed two such incidents over the last two days, immediately swung into action and called for the crane which was recently arranged by the district administration for such incidents in the Ghats.
While some locals were involved in directing smaller vehicles through the bend where the lorry toppled, others helped in setting the lorry back on its wheels before it was towed away from the spot. For the locals, the past few days have been back-breaking with incidents of lorries toppling for two consecutive days, starting Friday.
He recalled how the buses were stuck for about two hours, including many Dharmasthala- and Mangaluru-bound one, but the passengers somehow patiently managed for hours before traffic could begin moving slowly.
It was only by 11:30 am, and with the efforts of the locals in coordination with the police, that traffic on the Ghats was restored to normal, he said.