Two die in freak accidents
A 42-year-old driver died after being crushed between two container trucks at a container yard at Hendala in Wattala.
The victim, D. H. Nimal Chandrasoma, a father of two, from Palapaddala in Ratnapura, was trying to walk through a gap between a stationary truck and a truck being pushed by the workers of the yard, his cousin, W. A. Indrajith, told a coroner’s court.
He said he was one of the workers who pushed the truck. “Chandrasoma was trapped between the two trucks. We saw he was severely wounded in the head. We took him to the National Hospital where he died.”
Colombo’s JMO Dr. S. Adikaram ruled that the death was caused by head injuries, blunt force trauma and excessive bleeding and declared it an accidental death.
Meanwhile, a 70-year-old resident of Godiganuwa in Tangalle died when a concrete pole fell on him from a 16-wheel long-vehicle when the driver lost control and it veered off the road.
The incident took place near former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Carlton House in Tangalle.
The truck carrying about 40 concrete poles veered off the road and collided with eight vehicles after a sudden brake failure. A strap that was keeping the poles in place snapped, causing them to fall off -- and one fell on a passer-by. The victim, identified as R.P. Wijedasa, a businessman, was rushed to the Tangalle General Hospital and later taken to the National Hospital, Colombo where he succumbed to his injuries.
Giving evidence at the inquest, H.D. Dayaratne, the driver of the long-vehicle, said he was transporting the poles from Galle to the Ceylon Electricity Board office in Tangalle. He said that due to a brake failure he could not control the vehicle and the accident took place.The Inquirer into Sudden Deaths, Ashroff Rumi, ordered the Tangalle Police to carry out further investigations.