Daijiworld Media Network - Beltangady (SP)

Beltangady, Jun 24: After two lorries collided with each other at Artila in Sonandur village in the taluk on Saturday June 23 morning, traffic on national highway between Dharmasthala and Mangaluru came to a standstill for three hours.

A lorry that was proceeding towards Mangaluru from the direction of the town collided with another truck coming from opposite direction. One of the trucks had only its driver, while the other vehicle had both driver and a cleaner. Both the drivers were injured in the accident, and stand hospitalized. As the front portions of both the lorries were badly damaged and got entangled with each other, the road remained blocked. Pujalkatte police who later arrived at the spot engaged backhoes to separate the lorries and pave way for traffic to resume.

The accident happened during office hours, as a result of which office goers and students were the worst hit. Several students whose educational institutions were a little distance away, opted to walk the distance. The school bus of Vani school here was one of the vehicles which had got stuck. School principal asked the driver to drop the children back to their houses and the bus could not hope to reach the school within a reasonable time. A person who was to travel to a foreign destination was stuck. The police made arrangements for his onward journey.

As Shiradi ghat road is closed for traffic, the vehicles moving between Bengaluru and Mangaluru now use Ujire - Charmadi ghat road, as a result of which this road witnesses dense traffic. Several sections of this highway are very narrow, and the said accident happened at the spot where the space is just enough for two vehicles to pass with difficulty. This section of the highway witnesses accidents often.

As the highway remained blocked for unduly long period, many vehicles took Madanthyar - Ballamanja, Kalleri road to reach Guruvayanakere.