A woman was killed and 18 others injured after a speeding container trailer truck rammed into at least 20 vehicles on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, causing a massive pile-up.
A police official quoted by news agency PTI said the incident happened on Saturday afternoon near Adoshi tunnel under Khopoli police station limits in Khalapur taluka in Raigad district of Maharashtra.
How did the accident happen? What did probe reveal?
The official said the driver of the container trailer truck lost control of the vehicle after brake failure.
As per police, the trailer’s brakes failed on a steep stretch of road, resulting in the vehicle ramming into the traffic ahead.
Police said the driver was taken into custody by Khopoli police. A medical examination showed he was not under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident, the official added.
“Prima facie, the accident was the result of brake failure. The driver was not under the influence of alcohol. The damage was major as the brakes failed while he was driving down a slope,” he added.
“A case has been registered and further probe is underway,” he added.
Women dead, heavy damage to luxury vehicles
Seven vehicles were extensively damaged in the accident.
“It [truck] collided with vehicles in front of it. The impact was so great that the trailer dragged several vehicles nearly 3.5 km,” Raigad superintendent of police Anchal Dalal as quoted by the Hindustan Times.
“It hit at least 20 vehicles, including luxury cars like BMW and Mercedes, resulting in serious injuries to 19 persons. They were admitted to a private hospital in Navi Mumbai. Of these, a woman died while undergoing treatment,” the official said.
The deceased was identified as Anita Sahadev Ekhande, a resident of Padoli village in Dharashiv district, HT reported. The 58-year-old was reportedly travelling with her family in an SUV when the trailer, moving downhill from Pune towards Mumbai, lost control and crashed into multiple vehicles.