Three persons, all youths in early 20s, died and three others were seriously injured after the car they were on hit an iron rod at a diversion and then rammed into a tree before slipping 10 feet down the road in the wee hours of Wednesday.
All were friends and they were returning homes in Raipur after attending a party at Thano, near Jolly Grant, Doiwala. The incident occurred Pavwala, Saura, Thano, Doiwala. All the three deceased were charred to death. The injured were admitted at Jolly Grant Hospital.
A Jolly Grant police in-charge sub-inspector Ram Naresh Sharma said that three persons sitting in the front seats were burnt to death as the car exploded into flames after it hit a road divider and rammed into a roadside tree before slipping off the road into a 10-feet gorge.
Though the actual cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, police and fire officials and a Dehradun-based car showroom mechanic suspect that a short- circuit and a rupture in the fuel tank might have sparked off the blaze.
Deceased have been identified as Anmol (21) resident of Tunawala, Rahul Negi (21), resident of Krishan Vihar and Satendra (20), resident of Kaling Colony, Raipur. The injured are Rajendra (19), Hemant Negi (20) and Rubal (20), residents of Raipur.
locals rushed to the spot after they heard a loud bang. On reaching the spot, they saw the car (UK07 AN3688) deep in the ditch, blazing in leaping flames with thick smoke billowing from it. Three were found dead while three others managed to come out with the help of the locals. Eyewitnesses were surprised, finding that while three were charred almost beyond recognition the others sustained minor injury. The local residents called the cops, who, in turn, informed the fire department and SDRF. One fire tender was rushed to the spot. Subsequently, the blaze was doused.
Police, probing the accident, said they were looking into all the angles involved in the mishap. SDRF sub-inspector Diwan Singh Mehta said that he along with SDRF personnel had rushed to the spot and dragged the car up on the road. Gas cutter was used to extract the bodies from inside the car. Police said that over-speeding might have accounted for the mishap. “We are investigating how the car caught fire,” said one of them.
A Dehradun- based car showroom mechanic Aseem said that Volkswagen car that met the accident is an expensive one fitted with adequate safety appliances. “Such a car seldom catches fire. The experts must see to it how the thing happened. Fire engulfing the car so quickly with the air bag protection failing to save those on board must be probed in depth. Maybe, the deceased sitting in the front seat were stuck up and charred to death. Things are still murky as the car catching fire despite everything such a car is fitted with by way of protective devices baffles us,” he added.