3 dead as car rams into stationary truck on Vashi bridge

Three people, including a retired couple, died in a car crash into a stationary dumper truck on Vashi Creek bridge in Navi Mumbai early Friday.

Navi Mumbai: Three persons died on the spot after the car they were travelling in crashed into a stationary dumper truck on Vashi Creek bridge around 4.15 am on Friday. The victims, including a retired couple, were travelling from Pune to Mumbai. The 1.8 km bridge is a no-parking zone and the Ertiga driver failed to notice the parked truck on the bridge and rammed into it, resulting in his and his co-passengers’ death.

3 dead as car rams into stationary truck on Vashi bridge

This is the second such accident in Navi Mumbai involving a stationary truck and car. On October 20, a Customs officer died and two of his colleagues sustained injuries after their car rammed into a stationary truck at Juinagar.

Giving details about Friday’s accident that killed three, an officer told HT, “Despite being a no-parking zone, the truck driver stopped his vehicle on the bridge to check whether the tyres were punctured. He had stopped only for a few minutes and by the time he could start his vehicle, the Ertiga crashed into it.”

The Navi Mumbai police have detained the truck driver and booked him under sections 106 (1) (causing death by negligence), 281 (rash driving endangering lives), 324(4) (intent to cause harm along) and sections 184 (penalties for dangerous driving) and 134 A and B (driver’s responsibilities after the accident) of the Motor Vehicles Act.

The car driver has been identified as Ganesh Udaysingh Bhonsale, 30, and the couple are Sheela Kadangchi, 62 and her husband Chandrakant Kadangchi, 67, who suffered fatal injuries to their heads and internal organs. Officials from NMMC hospital informed that all three succumbed to poly-trauma with severe internal injuries and broken bones.

The deceased driver Bhonsale was a resident of Wai in Satara district whereas the couple was residing in Pune. The couple was heading to Mumbai to meet their daughter. “They were retired and frequently travelled to the city to meet their daughter. They had one more daughter who lives in Pune. The driver was married and had two sons aged 6 months and 2.5 years old. Relatives had come to claim their bodies,” said the police officer.

The driver is being made to undergo a test to ascertain whether he was drunk or not. “The driver was detained and has undergone the required medical tests and was let go in the evening after serving of notice as per the Supreme Court guidelines,” said Manik Nalawade, senior police inspector, Vashi.