Tanker driver dies in freak accident

The driver of a fuel tanker was killed and its cleaner suffered injuries in a freak accident that occurred in KR Puram area early Wednesday morning.

The deceased was identified as D K Shivakumar, 25, a resident of Pandavapura in Mandya district. Manjunath, 19, the tanker cleaner and a native of Channarayapatna in Hassan district, is being treated at a private hospital. He is stated to be out of danger, said the police.

The accident took place at 1.10 am in front of ASR Kalyan Mantap on Ring Road in Ramamurthynagar. Shivakumar was at the wheel of the tanker, which was headed towards Hebbal from Ramamurthynagar. He lost control of the vehicle, which climbed the median and overturned on the other side of the road, a one-way, said the police.

Before the tanker keeled over, Shivakumar and Manjunath fell from it. However, the driver came under its front wheel and died instantly. The police shifted the two to a nearby hospital. Shivakumar’s body was handed over to his family members after a postmortem at Bowring Hospital.