Five of a family among 8 killed in car-van collision
PRELIMINARY PROBE SUGGESTED THAT THE VAN DRIVER WAS DRUNK AND DRIVING ON THE WRONG SIDE
LUCKNOW: Reckless driving claimed the lives of eight people, including five of a family, when a car and van had a head-on collision on VIP road in Telibagh under PGI police station, about half-an-hour past Monday midnight. Ten others were injured while seven of them were said to be critical at KGMU’s trauma centre.
Rajesh Pandey, senior superintendent of police (SSP), told HT that the car driver tried to overtake a truck after taking a turn from Nahariya crossing at Telibagh but the vehicle rammed into a truck before colliding with a van coming from opposite direction. He said preliminary probe suggested that the van driver was drunk and driving on the wrong side.
The mishap occurred when Nigoha resident Yogendra Tiwari was in his car along with wife Ruchi Tiwari, children (Anushka, 9, Tanishq, 6, and Riya, 5), elder brother Virendra Tiwari’s daughter Suhani and two friends Anupam Singh and Sanjay Singh at around 12.40 am.
They were returning from the ‘Tilak’ ceremony of Yogendra’s relative Pankaj Dixit in Alambagh. While others died on the spot, Tanishq succumbed to injuried later and Suhani was put on ventilator at the trauma centre. The van was carrying another family from Para comprising Vikas Yadav, Nirankar Yadav, Raj Kumar Yadav, Harish Kumar, Mannu Yadav, Rohan, Yogesh, Rajesh and Suraj. They were returning from a wedding in Biraur under PGI police station. Iftikhar, who was driving the van, was killed while nine others were injured in the mishap. Three of those injured were discharged after being administered first aid.
Om Prakash, a roadside vendor who witnessed the mishap, said the collision was so massive that the car’s roof and engine were badly damaged while the van was crushed.
“Blood spilled all over on the road and it was a frightening sight,” he said, adding that cops present at Telibagh outpost responded quickly and rescued those injured by pulling them out of damaged vehicles”.