A steel-laden truck got stuck in loose soil that was used to cover a dug-up road in Bharat Nagar in Tiruppalai on Wednesday.
All the three wheels on the left side of the truck got buried for more than two feet. An attempt made by a crane to lift the truck, carrying more than 20 tonnes of steel rods, not only failed but damaged a portion of the truck.
The lorry was carrying steel rods for construction of an overhead tank by Madurai Corporation in Ward 8.
“First, the road is not fit for operating a truck with such heavy objects. Secondly, the dug-up portion of the road was not properly restored,” said a retired Chief Engineer of State Highways, A. K. Rajaduraivel Pandian, who is a resident of Kambar Street in Bharat Nagar.
He said that loads of steel and other construction materials should be divided into small quantities and taken to the work site in smaller vehicles so that they do not get stuck in loose soil. However, this time, a young driver, without realising the impending danger drove the truck with huge load and it got stuck at around 1.30 p.m.
“Though the materials were going for construction on behalf of Madurai Corporation, the contractors did not inform the Corporation engineers. Neither the officials of TANGEDCO nor those involved in laying of underground drainage system were informed,” he complained.
Had the engineers come to the spot, a safe way of retrieving the truck partially buried in the loose soil would have been adopted.
“In the absence of any technical supervision, the crane tried to do the impossible act of lifting the truck with such a huge load only to rip off a portion of the truck,” he said. He cautioned that such improper way of handling could lead to accidents.
The retired engineer also complained that the Corporation had not carried out road restoration work in a proper manner.
