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8 Karnataka pilgrims killed as cement tanker hits vehicle near Mantralayam
According to the Mantralayam police, the tanker driver's rash and negligent driving appears to have caused the collision.
The cement tanker that rammed into the SUV carrying pilgrims from Karnataka around 2.45 am near Mantralayam mandal. (Express photo)
As many as eight pilgrims, including six women, from Karnataka, on their way to seek blessings at Mantralayam, were killed and 13 others injured in a head-on collision between a cement-laden tanker and a Bolero goods vehicle in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district early Thursday.
The accident occurred around 2.45 am near Chilakaladona village in Mantralayam mandal, when the Bolero, carrying pilgrims from Chikkamagaluru district, was en route to darshan. The police said the vehicle, driven by Sunil, 40, collided with a tanker approaching from the opposite direction.
“The impact was severe as both vehicles were at considerable speed. Prima facie, rash and negligent driving by the tanker driver appears to have caused the collision,” a police officer from Mantralayam Police Station said.
Five occupants of the Bolero died on the spot, while several others sustained critical injuries. They were rushed to the Government Hospital in Mantralayam, where three more victims succumbed, taking the death toll to eight.
Among the deceased are Kumar, 60, Deepika Veena, 35, Sunil, 40, a three-year-old child, Belli, Puttamma, 60, Meenakshi, 50, Lolakshi, and Yashoda, 60.
All the victims were residents of different villages in Chikkamagaluru district, the police said.
Of the injured, nine were later referred to the Government General Hospital in Kurnool for advanced treatment, while others are undergoing care locally.
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The bodies have been shifted to the Government Hospital in Yemmiganur for post-mortem examination.
The tanker driver, identified as Ramanna Basappa, 28, reportedly escaped unhurt. Senior police officials, including the Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of Yemmiganur, visited the accident site and are supervising the investigation.
A case has been registered at Mantralayam Police Station.
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