As many as 13 persons were killed, 12 of them on the spot, when a multi-utility vehicle (Tata Sumo) they were travelling crashed into a stationary cement bulker truck, near Chitravati on the outskirts of Chikkaballapur in the early hours of Thursday.
The deceased include 8 men, 4 women and a six-year-old child. Most of the victims were doing odd jobs in Bengaluru. Three of them were from Karnataka and 10 from Andhra Pradesh (AP). They were returning to Bengaluru for work after Dasara holidays.
The Tata Sumo was proceeding from Gorantla in Satyasai district of AP to Bengaluru. On the way, the driver picked up passengers. The nine-seater vehicle had 13 passengers. There was heavy fog in Chikkaballapur district in the early hours. A cement bulker truck was parked by the side of NH-44 and the Tata Sumo rammed the truck from behind, killing 12 including the driver, on the spot. A severely injured woman breathed last in the hospital. The Tata Sumo was reduced to a heap of metal due to the impact of the collision.
Chikkaballapur MLA Pradeep Eshwar, Superintendent of Police D L Nagesh, Deputy Commissioner P N Ravindra and others visited the spot. The Chikkaballapur rural police have registered cases against drivers of both the vehicles.
(Published 26 October 2023, 20:10 IST)