Eight persons, including five children, were killed and 23 others were injured on Saturday when a pick-up van carrying labourers from Madhya Pradesh fell off a bridge in north Maharashtra’s Dhule district.
The incident occurred shortly after midnight when the van crashed into the rocky bed of the Bori river, Dhule Taluka police station inspector Dilip V. Gangurde said. He said the van was travelling on Chalisagaon-Dhule highway near Vichur village around 12.30 a.m. when the driver lost control of the vehicle while attempting to avoid a pothole.
The vehicle hit the parapet of the bridge, broke through it and plunged into the river around 40 to 50 feet below, the official said. As the van hit the rocky riverbed, seven passengers died on the spot, while one woman died while undergoing treatment. The deceased included three labourers — two women and one man.
The van was carrying 31 passengers and 23 of them sustained injuries. All of the injured have been admitted to Hiray Medical College in Dhule, the police official said. The condition of five of them is serious and have been admitted to Dhule Civil Hospital.
The deceased have been identified as Ritesh Ledaram Arya (six months), Jinyabai Ambu Pavra (13), Miyali Ledaram Arya (23), Ravina Ledaram Arya (5), Karan Sevasingh Barela (3), Haramsingh Sevasingh Barela (5), Lalsingh Ambu Pavra (20) and Guddibai Barela (30), all residents of Dhaulyagiri in Sendhwa taluka in Madhya Pradesh’s Barwani district.
Mr. Gangurde said, “All the victims are labourers hailing from Dhauligiri and Sendha in Barwani district of Madhya Pradesh. We are on the lookout for the two labour contractors, Kiran Kavde and Sujit Tambare, who are absconding.”
The victims were on their way to Osmanabad to work at a sugarcane factory that manufactured jaggery, the official said. After the accident, villagers from the nearby areas informed the police, who rushed to the spot and started the rescue operation, the official said. The driver of the van, identified as Sagar Bharat Tambade, a resident of Osmanabad, and his two helpers are absconding. A case has been registered with the Dhule taluka police.
