Death toll in Jaipur truck fire increases to 19; 11 undergoing treatment

The death toll in the tragic fire incident in Jaipur increased to 19 as another person undergoing treatment at Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Hospital succumbed to burn injuries on Thursday. Hospital authorities said 11 are still undergoing treatment at the hospital.

Dr Sushil Bhati, superintendent of SMS Hospital informed that one more death was recorded on Thursday. The patient, Lalaram (28), suffered severe burn injuries in the incident and was on ventilator support. Dr Bhati said the deceased suffered 60 per cent burns in the fire.

"Currently, 11 people are undergoing treatment at the hospital," he said. Dr Bhatti added two or three patients are doing better and they are likely to get discharged on Thursday.

Lalaram's friend Ramavtar told PTI that the victim was working as a security guard in an IT company at the Mahindra SEZ. He was on his way to work on a motorcycle when he got engulfed in flames. “He had a morning shift that day. He was a resident of Sanganer but had shifted to the Kanota area on the Agra highway sometime ago. He was on a motorcycle when the incident happened," Ramavtar told PTI.

A massive fire occurred on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway on December 20 after a truck loaded with chemicals hit against an LPG tanker and other vehicles. According to police, in the collision, the outlet nozzle of the LPG tanker got damaged, leading to a gas leak and it caused a massive fireball. At least five succumbed on the spot itself and close to 40 vehicles got completely gutted in the fire. Three persons succumbed to burn injuries on Wednesday.

Jaipur police recently interrogated the driver of the tanker who managed to escape from the accident site immediately after the clash. The driver, Jaiveer (40), a resident of Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, reportedly called and informed the vehicle owner about the clash immediately after the incident and switched off his phone.