Three persons were burnt alive after a car in which they were travelling caught fire after colliding with a truck in Andhra Pradesh's Prakasam district on Tuesday, police said. The incident occurred near Thippayapalem in Markapuram mandal of Prakasam. The car caught fire after it rammed into a truck, trapping all the three occupants in flames. The accident occurred after one of the tyres of the car burst.
Police suspect that the petrol tank of the car was damaged in the collision, resulting in leakage of the fuel and triggering the fire. By the time firefighting personnel rushed to the spot, the vehicle was completely gutted. According to police, the car driver was Ravuri Teja (35), a native of Bakaraopet in Chittoor district. Two other deceased were yet to be identified. The car was proceeding from Cumbum in Prakasam district to Srisailam.
In another such incident in December 2021, six people, including an infant, were killed in an accident when their car caught fire after it crashed into a road divider near Tirupati. The accident occurred at Agarala village on the Puthalapattu-Naidupeta highway. The car hit the divider while speeding and was flipped onto the other side of the road, and then caught fire. The car was completely burnt in the accident. The passengers were returning after visiting Kanipakam temple near Chittoor and were on their way to the Tirumala Venkateswara temple.
In January 2021, two men died of electrocution when their car hit an electric pole near Visakhapatnam. The victims were among five people travelling in the car from Gokavaram to Visakhapatnam when the accident happened near Mallisala village of Jaggampeta mandal.
Earlier in 2020, a tourist bus carrying around 50 pilgrims caught fire in Srikakulam district. The passengers narrowly escaped a mishap and no casualties were reported, although a few passengers suffered minor injuries.