Chandrapur: 9 charred to death after tanker-truck collision sparks blaze

Chandrapur: Nine people were charred to death in a ghastly fire that broke out following the collision of a diesel tanker and a truck laden with timber near Ajaypur village on Chandrapur–Mul Road late on Thursday night. Both the vehicles were burned completely and only skeletal metal remains were left.
The diesel tanker was headed towards Mul from Chandrapur, while the truck carrying wood logs had started from Wadsa and was heading towards Chandrapur. The two vehicles collided head-on at breakneck speed. The collision sparked fire in the diesel tanker that soon engulfed the truck with the logs.
The truck driver and six labourers travelling in the truck to unload the logs, along with the diesel tanker driver and its cleaner, were burned in the inferno.
The deceased have been identified as truck driver Ajay Dongre (30), labourers Prashant Nagrale (30), Mangesh Tiple (25), Mahipal Parchake (46), Balkrishna Telang (40), Sainath Kodape (40) and Sandeep Kodape (22), diesel tanker driver Hanif Khan and cleaner Ajay Patil (35). Khan and Patil belonged to Amravati and Wardha, respectively, while the truck driver and labourers were from different villages in Ballarpur tehsil here.
The collision was so deadly that both vehicles were engulfed in the blaze within a few minutes. The inflammable fuel in the tanker and the logs in the truck caught fire, turning it into a massive inferno. None of the people travelling in the two vehicles got a chance to escape.
Bystanders at a highway restaurant nearby rushed to the spot upon hearing explosion and seeing the rising flames, but they too failed to help the passengers evacuate. The flames from the two trucks were seen rising over the 40-feet-tall trees around. Many trees around the accident spot too caught fire and were charred completely.
Traffic on the highway was blocked on the either side of the collided vehicles for the entire night following the accident. A long queue of vehicles was formed on either side of the spot. Cops then diverted the traffic via Kelzar Road.
A fire brigade from Chandrapur reached the spot after midnight and doused the fire. However, by then both the vehicles were completely charred and only the metal remains were left. Traffic was cleared on Friday morning by pushing both the vehicles to the side of the road.
Ramngar police later carried out an inquest. The bodies were brought to Chandrapur and identified by their kin. The firefighting work is learnt to have continued till the early morning hours.
Former finance minister and Ballarpur MLA Sudhir Mungantiwar has demanded immediate release of financial assistance of Rs5 lakh each from the Chief Minister’s Fund to the families of the nine victims. He has written to CM Uddhav Thackeray in this regard.
Mungantiwar said he also spoke with chief secretary Vikash Kharge, who “assured of positive action”. Mungantiwar visited GMCH here and met the family members of the deceased.