Seven people, including four women and three children, were killed after a speeding 18-wheeler truck mowed down a group of roadside bystanders late on Thursday night in Jharkhand's Khunti district, police confirmed, Nation Press reported. The accident took place near the Jone-Ludru turn, before Poda, on the Karra-Torpa main road, within the Karra police station area.

Source: Nation Press

According to eyewitness accounts reported by Nation Press, at around 9:45 p.m. a scooter rider lost control and fell into bushes near a culvert close to the Jone-Ludru turn. Local women and children gathered at the spot to help the fallen rider. While they stood along the roadside, a truck bearing registration number JH 02 AJ 1377, reportedly travelling at high speed from the Torpa side towards Karra, ploughed into the crowd. PTI's report of the police account carried the same toll, location and sequence.

Source: Nation Press

Six people died on the spot. Local residents alerted police and helped take the dead and injured to Khunti Sadar Hospital, where 12-year-old Saurabh Nayak, who had been rushed there in a critical condition, died at around 11:15 p.m., raising the toll to seven. The deceased have been identified as Pako Devi, Kasila Devi, Manhu Devi, Golu Kumar, Anjali Kumari, Tuti Kumari and Saurabh Nayak, all residents of a colony near the Jone-Ludru turn. Khushbu Kumari, who was injured, was undergoing treatment at Khunti Sadar Hospital.

Source: Nation Press

7Killed — four women and three children
9:45 p.m., ThursdayWhen the truck struck the roadside group
1Injured — Khushbu Kumari, under treatment at Khunti Sadar Hospital
JH 02 AJ 1377Truck identified by police; driver and helper absconding

Local residents alleged that the truck driver was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash — an allegation police have not confirmed. The driver and a helper fled the scene immediately after the collision, according to witnesses. Police have registered a case, identified the truck by its registration number and launched a manhunt for the accused.

Source: Nation Press

Residents of the area have previously flagged the Jone-Ludru turn as an accident-prone bend on the Karra-Torpa road, a district connector that carries heavy truck movement at night. The investigation is ongoing.