CHENNAI: As many as 15 people, including 12 passengers of a private bus, were injured in two road accidents that occurred on the Palar river bridge within a gap of 2 hours near Sevilimedu in Kancheepuram on Thursday.
The Palar bridge at Sevilimedu, spanning 1 km, is a key route for vehicles travelling towards Puducherry, Tiruvannamalai, Cheyyar, Vandavasi, Tindivanam and other southern districts.
For many years, the residents have been demanding that the bridge be widened or an additional bridge be constructed to handle the heavy traffic flow.
On Thursday, around 5 am, a heavily loaded lorry carrying M-sand was heading from Cheyyar in Tiruvannamalai district to Kancheepuram.
At the same time, an empty lorry was heading in the opposite direction. About 100 metres onto the bridge near Punjai Arasanthangal, the M-sand lorry reportedly lost control and rammed the oncoming lorry.
The driver of the M-sand lorry suffered severe injuries, and his left leg was crushed. Fire and rescue personnel, along with Kancheepuram Taluk police, rushed to the spot and rescued the trapped driver, who was sent to the Kancheepuram Government Headquarters Hospital for treatment.
While traffic was still being regulated, a second accident took place around 7 am near the Orikkai junction on the same bridge stretch.
A private bus from Cheyyar to Kancheepuram collided with a speeding lorry carrying gravel stones. The impact was severe, and the bus conductor, Manikandan (24), who was standing on the footboard, suffered severe injury and one of his legs was chopped off. Around 12 passengers on the bus also sustained injuries.
Enraged by the incident, fellow passengers and residents surrounded the lorry and attacked the driver. Police quickly intervened, rescued the driver and took him to the police station.
The injured bus conductor and passengers were rushed to the Kancheepuram Government Hospital in 108 ambulances. Police said they are investigating whether the lorry driver was under the influence of alcohol and whether overloading contributed to the accident.
Following the accidents, the traffic was affected on the stretch for more than five hours in the morning.