Mumbai woke up to yet another disturbing road carnage yesterday with another deadly road accident when a two-wheeler worker who was doing business as a food delivery executive was killed in the early morning in Jogeshwari West in Mumbai
The accident took place early morning of July 4 as he was driving his motorcycle, when a tanker hit him with such force that he died at the scene. Witnesses said it was so violent that the heavy vehicle was speeding at a fast pace when it crashed into him and left the biker dead at the scene.
Emergency workers didn’t come down to the scene the delivery worker died before anyone could help him. What’s so sad about it is that the delivery worker died right away after the collision.
Rather than slow down, the tanker’s driver who was drunk appeared to try to run away from the scene of the accident, said a witness. But his escape attempt was short-lived. Residents of the area jumped into action, chasing the fleeing vehicle and physically restraining the driver so that he couldn’t escape. They then handed him over to Oshiwara police officers, ensuring he could not evade responsibility.
The man was booked and police started the investigation. The victim’s body is now being sent for post-mortem examination to determine the cause and circumstances of death, and police are still investigating whether he was driving under the influence of alcohol and whether his documents and vehicle were in compliance with safety regulations.
This is not the only case in Mumbai that has resulted in fatal accidents involving tankers, dumpers, and other heavy commercial vehicles, many of which travel along narrow residential roads at high speed at night when traffic police are not present.
Delivery riders who spend hours in the city at night navigating unfamiliar areas to meet clients have to deal with these dangers, and such crashes are a direct result of the precarious nature of their work. Jogeshwari residents have been worried about tanker speed at night in their neighborhood and have been calling for the police to beef up speed and sobriety checks for commercial drivers.
Saturday's crash is going to fuel calls for more enforcement, better street lighting, and harsher punishment for drivers who flee the scene of a collision. As the case moves forward, police are expected to press charges against the driver for rash and negligent driving, causing death, and driving under the influence, pending evidence from forensic and toxicology tests.
Meanwhile, the young rider’s tragic and avoidable death has left his family and fellow gig workers grieving for a life lost far too soon.
