Sambalpur: The drivers of an LPG tanker and a coal-laden truck were burnt alive after flames engulfed their vehicles following a head-on collision between the trucks. The incident took place near Jujumura police station square on Sambalpur-Angul National Highway-55 in the wee hours of Saturday.
After the mishap, locals immediately informed the police and the fire department. After a while, fire engines from Jujumura, Sambalpur and Maneswar reached the spot and tamed the fire.
While one of the deceased has been identified as Shyamsundar Pani, a resident of Puri district, the second one is yet to be identified. The LPG tanker was heading from Sambalpur towards Cuttack and the coal-laden truck was coming from the opposite direction, it was learnt.
Since the incident involved an LPG tanker and gas was feared to be leaking, local residents were a panicked lot. That said, the road was blocked from both sides temporarily and a specialist team from Jharsuguda was brought in to handle the situation.
Meanwhile, the charred bodies have been sent for postmortem and further investigations are on.
PNN