4 dead, 3 critically injured as methanol tanker overturns on Pune-Mumbai Expressway, triggers fire

As the entire tanker was engulfed in flames, both sides of the expressway were closed for traffic by the Highway Safety Patrol authorities between 11.40 am and 12.40 pm. Small vehicles were diverted via the Khandala exit, officials said.

Four people were charred to death and three others sustained critical burn injuries after a tanker carrying methanol overturned, spilling the highly inflammable and toxic chemical, and resulting in a fire on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway near Lonavala around 11.40 am on Tuesday, officials said.

An officer with Pune Rural police said the accident took place on an overbridge located near the hill station of Lonavala. Investigators are determining what caused the accident. The police are also trying to ascertain details of the ownership and operation of the tanker which was moving on the Pune to Mumbai lane of the 94-km-long expressway.

As the entire tanker was engulfed in flames, both sides of the expressway were closed for traffic by the Highway Safety Patrol authorities between 11.40 am and 12.40 pm. Small vehicles were diverted via the Khandala exit, officials said.