Truck topples on car at Taptapani ghat, seven injured in Odisha
BERHAMPUR: Traffic on Berhampur-Rayagada road was disrupted for hours after a cashew nut-laden truck toppled on a car, injuring seven persons at Taptapani ghat in Ganjam district on Monday.
Police said a car carrying five persons from Bhubaneswar was proceeding towards Jeypore. Near Khemundikhola, the driver of the cashew nut-laden truck, which was on way to Berhampur from Gajapati, lost control. The vehicle swerved and fell on the right side of the car, trapping all its five occupants. As the cashew nut sacks spilled on to the road, traffic on the route came to a grinding halt.
Hearing the loud sound of the crash, locals rushed to the spot and rescued four passengers from the car besides the driver and helper of the truck. However, the car driver was trapped as his side of the vehicle was badly mangled.
On being informed, Pattapur police along with fire services personnel reached the mishap site and lifted the truck with the help of a crane. The mangled portion of the car was broke open with gas cutter and the driver, identified as Asutosh Patnaik, was rescued after over an hour, said IIC of Pattapur police station Dipti Ranjan Behera.
Subsequently, the cashew nut-filled sacks were removed from the road following which traffic resumed on the route. All the seven injured persons were admitted to Digapahandi hospital. Six of them were discharged after first-aid while Asutosh was shifted to MKCG Medical College and Hospital at Berhampur for further treatment.
Both the vehicles involved in the mishap were seized. A case has been registered in connection with the incident and investigation is underway, Behera added.