21-Year-Old Tempo Driver Killed in Hit-and-Run by Dumper in Mankhurd

Mumbai: A tragic hit-and-run accident on the Sion-Panvel highway resulted in the death of a 21-year-old tempo driver and left five passengers injured. The incident occurred in Mankhurd when an unidentified dumper vehicle, making an illegal U-turn in the middle of the road, collided with the tempo.

According to police reports, the accident happened near the old forest check post on the northbound stretch of the Sion-Panvel Highway. Bhagwan Damu Kamble, 58, a head constable with the Mankhurd police station, received a call from the control room about the collision and promptly arrived at the scene with his team.

Upon investigation, Kamble and his colleagues learned that the dumper had abruptly taken a U-turn, causing the tempo (MH47BL 1327) traveling behind it to crash into the dumper. The tempo driver, Sonu Krishna Kumar Gaud, suffered severe injuries and was rushed to Sion Hospital, where he was pronounced dead upon arrival. The five passengers, all vegetable vendors en route to Vashi Market, were initially taken to Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar for treatment. Although their injuries were reported as minor, the vendors, hailing from Malad and Kandivali, left the hospital without informing the police.

The dumper driver fled the scene following the accident. The Mankhurd police have registered a case against the unidentified driver, who is now being sought for his role in the fatal collision. Senior Inspector Mahadev Koli of Mankhurd police station stated, "We are reviewing CCTV footage from the highway to track the dumper's escape route. The vehicle was last seen heading towards Vashi. We are confident that we will apprehend the driver soon."

The authorities are continuing their search for the dumper driver and are appealing to anyone with information about the incident to come forward.