Team Herald
CANACONA: A container truck brushed the central beam of the “height gauge protection clamp” below the overhead bridge of Konkan railway at Charrasta resulting in traffic being blocked for well over a hour.
A container truck driven by Ismail Usman and co driver Mastan Abbas Ali, both residents of Gulbarga, Karnataka was proceeding from Mangalore to Panjim, at about 11.00 AM, Wednesday when the truck reached the road under the railway bridge of the Konkan Railway at Char Rasta.
The top portion of the container truck brushed against the horizontal iron beam meant for safety of the over bridge, which was already tilted on one side. The impact was such the beam welded to the side support, separated on one side and on the other side one of the two vertical support poles seperated into two pieces. This resulted in the horizontal beam getting dangerously positioned on the road partially blocking the road for about half an hour. Since this was the morning hours, it was providential escape, since the beam could have fallen on a two wheeler or other vehicles.
Later locals with the help of police got a crane from a construction site near by and cleared the highway for the traffic to move.
Ajay Bhagat ex chairperson of Canacona municipality later speaking to Herald said that the bridge safety mechanism which is supposed to protect the overhead bridge was seen tilted on one side. He suggested the KRC conduct a regular audit of these mechanisms all along the route which is in place to save railway property, but due to negligence on their part a lot of accidents like this are happening all over, he lamented.
Natividade D’Sa a senior citizen and social activist however said the fire brigade and other emergency services should have equipments to take care of such emergencies and requested the chairman of the local disaster management unit and the deputy collector of Canacona Mr. Kedar Naik to take steps in the direction.
