Driver killed as fuel tanker catches fire

Banihal/Jammu, March 1

A driver of a fuel tanker was charred to death after the vehicle skidded off the road and plunged into an over 1000-feet gorge along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway on Friday, officials said.

The incident took place at Battery Cheshma in Ramban district when the Bharat Petroleum tanker was travelling from Jammu to Srinagar, they said.

The tanker met with an accident when its driver Rajat Thappa lost control while negotiating a curve, the officials said. The vehicle caught fire and the rescuers, consisting of police and local volunteers, had a tough time retrieving the charred body of the deceased, who is said to be in his 30’s.

Fire and emergency services also rushed their personnel and machinery to douse the flames that had engulfed the bushes all along the steep slope, the officials said, adding that a portion of the tanker had submerged in Chenab river.