In a horrific accident, a truck driver was charred to death after a Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) tanker collided with his truck in the wee hours of Friday in Kerala’s Palakkad. It is believed that the diesel tank of the LPG tanker started leaking in the crash and caught fire, which spread to the truck. The deceased driver, who was fully charred inside the burnt truck, is yet to be identified.
According to officials of the Fire and Rescue Department, the incident occurred at 5.30 am on Friday near Thachampara on the Palakkad-Kozhikode National Highway. The tanker lorry has been identified as belonging to the Indian Oil Corporation.
As per the officials, during the collision the diesel tank of the tanker lorry leaked and caught fire, which further spread to the truck. “The whole truck burnt down with the driver inside. Due to this, the driver is yet to be identified,” said an official from the Fire and Rescue Department.
Officials state they believe that the vehicles had a head-on collision from the manner the LPG tanker and the truck were found at the accident spot.
Luckily, there was no leak in the LPG stored in the tanker, avoiding further disaster. From the images from the spot, the LPG tanker is seen to be intact while the truck has been fully burnt.
Multiple units of Fire and Rescue reached the spot to tackle the situation, the officer added.
The driver of the LPG tanker sustained minor injuries and has reportedly been hospitalised. Officials suspect that either of the drivers might have nodded off, which led to the accident.
Last year in September, an LPG tanker of the Indian Oil Corporation overturned in Kasaragod’s Bevinje, resulting in a gas leak. The accident led to the temporary displacement of over 200 families in the area.