Wardha: Six people were killed in a horrific road accident early Monday morning after a truck crashed into a stationary car on the Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Expressway in Maharashtra’s Wardha district. The severe impact triggered a massive fire, engulfing both vehicles near Virul village around 3:00 a.m.. The collision led to severe traffic disruptions along the busy expressway.
The chain of events began when a container truck carrying highly flammable ethanol overturned near interchange IC-80, completely blocking the Mumbai-to-Nagpur carriageway. While the adjacent lane remained operational, a stationary car parked on the roadside was violently struck from behind by another truck, causing both vehicles to catch fire immediately. The casualties included four passengers travelling in the car and two occupants of the truck, including the driver.
Emergency teams from the Highway Safety Patrol, Wardha Police, local fire brigades, and the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation quickly rushed to the site to launch rescue operations and clear the wreckage. Because the overturned container was loaded with hazardous ethanol, rescue workers had to exercise extreme caution to safely empty the tank before attempting its removal.
To facilitate the safe clearance of the accident site, traffic heading toward Nagpur was temporarily diverted to the opposite lane, causing heavy congestion along the affected stretch. Police advised motorists travelling from Nagpur to Mumbai to bypass the Samruddhi Expressway up to Wardha by taking the Nagpur-Amravati highway instead, rejoining the expressway later through the Amravati gate interchange.
The fatal crash highlights growing safety concerns on the route, as highway police data revealed that the Samruddhi Expressway recorded 185 accidents in 2025, marking a 35 per cent increase from the 137 accidents reported in 2024. The 701-kilometre, six-lane access-controlled highway has been opened in phases since December 2022. Officials noted that an Intelligent Traffic Management System is actively being implemented to enhance monitoring and prevent such tragedies in the future.
