Driver escapes unhurt as vehicle overturns and catches fire
Firefighters from Goa douse a blaze that gutted a pickup carrying coconuts from Karnataka to Goa via the Chorla Ghat.
BELAGAVI
A driver had a lucky escape when a pickup transporting coconuts from Karnataka to Goa via the Chorla Ghat met with an accident and caught fire in the wee hours of Tuesday.
The incident took place at around 4 am when there was dense fog in the Ghat area, due to which the driver could not judge the road properly. The driver misjudged a sharp turn at the Chorla Ghat, causing the load of coconuts in the vehicle to shift to one side, and the vehicle overturned.
After overturning, the vehicle suddenly caught fire due to a diesel leak, and the entire pickup truck was burnt to ashes, while the coconuts were scattered on the road.
A fire brigade from the Valpoi fire station rushed to the spot and brought the fire under control. It is estimated that the fire caused a loss of approximately Rs 5 lakh, including the vehicle and the coconuts.
A large number of tourists have arrived in Goa to celebrate the New Year, and there is a high demand for coconuts in the coastal areas. Coconuts were being transported from Karnataka to Goa to meet this demand.
Mishap revives demand for fire substation at Keri
VALPOI: The fire mishap at the Chorla Ghat in the wee hours of Tuesday has revived demands from locals for a fire substation at Keri.
According to locals, the Keri-Chorla highway has witnessed a surge in traffic in recent years. They claimed that the Valpoi fire station is located nearly 35 km from Chorla and that fire tenders from the Valpoi fire station take about 45 minutes to reach Chorla Ghat to attend to any emergency, wasting precious time in the process.
Locals have been demanding that a fire tender be stationed in the area to facilitate rapid response action in the Chorla Ghat area.
