Fourteen people have died and many more injured in the massive blaze on Jaipur-Ajmer highway
Jaipur:
The driver of the tanker carrying Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG), which sparked off the inferno on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway, was among the few people to escape the massive fire tragedy, unscathed. Police have identified the driver as Jaiveer, a resident of Mathura. They have contacted him and called him to Jaipur for questioning. According to police officer Manish Kumar, Jaiveer jumped off the truck after the impact and started running towards Jaipur. He was out of the danger zone before the gas from the tanker leaked, leading to a massive blast that left 14 people dead and 23 others injured.
The tanker driver, the police officer said, called the tanker’s owner after the accident and informed him about the crash. Police hope to find more details once they question the driver.
How The Accident Took Place
Around 5.30 am, the LPG tanker made a U-turn on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway. According to officials, this U-turn was open as a temporary arrangement to ease traffic amid construction activity near the highway.
While the tanker was taking the U-turn, a truck carrying bedsheets and coming from the opposite direction collided with the tanker. The nozzles and safety valves on the tanker broke due to the impact and gas started leaking. Soon after, a massive blast took place. Passengers of vehicles caught in the blaze did not get time to escape. Fourteen people have died and 23 others are recovering in hospital. Many of the bodies are charred and cannot be identified.
Who Is To Blame
According to road safety experts who spoke to news agency PTI, incomplete construction, sudden turns and a lack of traffic sense might have led to the accident. “The stretch of the Jaipur-Ajmer highway where the crash occurred is an accident-prone spot, with poor traffic management and ongoing construction creating hazardous conditions,” said George Cheriyan, a prominent voice of Road Safety Network in India.
Road safety expert Dr Prerna Arora Singh said, “There is no high mast lighting system at the intersection. Visibility becomes very low during winter. There is no radium, reflector or signal marker at the cut.”
She also said the width of the cut at the intersection was too narrow. “If a big truck such as a container or gas tanker passes through, it blocks the road on both sides. This could be the reason for the accident,” PTI quoted her as saying.
The Nozzle Question and Driver’s Role
According to a report in The Times of India, there have been previous incidents of tankers carrying LPG and CNG overturning on roads but safety valves and nozzles do not come undone easily. The investigators have now asked for the tanker’s fitness certificates and details of the LPG content at the time of the accident.
“Modern tankers are designed to withstand shocks encountered during transport, but for valves to break off is a cause of concern,” an official has said.
Also, drivers of vehicles carrying petroleum products are trained in using fire extinguishers and know the SOP in case of an emergency.
“The driver fled without alerting anyone because he knew there could be an explosion any moment. It would be too early to pin the blame single-handedly on the driver without proper investigation,” an official said, according to the TOI report.