A powerful explosion in an e-rickshaw killed the driver and damaged some houses at Englishbazar town in Bengal’s Malda district on Wednesday afternoon.
The explosion, which took place around 5 pm, rocked the area and shattered windowpanes and walls in several buildings. The driver’s body was ripped into pieces and the vehicle was completely destroyed. The driver could not be identified till Wednesday evening.
Local people said the vehicle was coming from the Ghorapir area in the Englishbazar municipality’s ward no 25 and was going towards Prabalpally.
It was not clear during preliminary investigation whether the driver was carrying explosives or whether the battery, which powers e-vehicles, exploded.
Malda superintendent of police Alok Rajoria rushed to the spot with senior officers and CID’s bomb disposal unit. The CID team collected samples.
“We are trying to identify the deceased. Samples have been collected from the blast site. We have started a probe,” said Rajoria.
Pratim Saha, a resident of the area, said, “The sound could be heard from a long distance. Luckily there was no one close to the vehicle. We rushed to the spot and found pieces of the driver’s body scattered all over the road.”
Saiful Alam, another local resident, said, “We have never seen an e-rickshaw blowing up like this. We saw a white container in the wreckage. Probably, it contained some explosive material.”
{{/usCountry}}Saiful Alam, another local resident, said, “We have never seen an e-rickshaw blowing up like this. We saw a white container in the wreckage. Probably, it contained some explosive material.”
{{/usCountry}}