Speeding bike on fire: Cops avert tragedy, alert riders

Kanpur: Police on Sunday averted a major accident when they chased a bike, which had caught fire on Agra-Lucknow expressway in Etawah, for around 4 km and alerted the riders to stop. The police later doused the fire. A man, his sister and her minor daughter, who were riding the bike, had a miraculous escape.
Police said a bag attached to the bike caught fire on the expressway at around 6 pm. Three policemen — Om Singh, Vikram Singh and Amit — deployed on patrol vehicle-1617, noticed the fire when the bike crossed them on the expressway.

They immediately switched on the hooter of their vehicle and started chasing the bike. When they reached close to the bike, they alerted the couple and asked them to stop the vehicle, said a police officer.

“The policemen then swung into action and doused the fire with whatever means they had,” he said.

All the three riders — Swantantra Shakya, a resident of Barnahal area of Mainpuri, his sister Arti and niece Shivani — escaped unhurt in the incident. The fire could be fatal, had it reached the fuel tank, said eyewitnesses.

The video of the entire incident soon went viral. DGP OP Singh also retweeted the video on Monday, praising the policemen for displaying exemplary professional commitment in averting a disaster. “I announce my commendation disc to the police personnel of UP100 PRV 1617,” he stated in the tweet.