At least eight people lost their lives and over a dozen sustained serious injuries after a heavily loaded container truck lost control and ploughed into multiple vehicles on Pune’s Navale Bridge on the Pune–Bengaluru Highway on Thursday evening. The accident occurred around 5:30 pm when the truck, travelling from Satara towards Mumbai, reportedly suffered a brake failure while descending the steep gradient near the Katraj tunnel.

Vehicles Engulfed in Flames

The out-of-control truck rammed into several vehicles, including two trucks and multiple cars, triggering a chain reaction that resulted in an inferno on the busy highway. Firefighters said a CNG-fitted car sandwiched between two trucks caught fire instantly, and the flames intensified due to combustion of CNG, diesel and petrol.

Nearly 70 personnel from Pune Fire Brigade and PMRDA fire units worked to control the blaze and rescue survivors. Several bodies were retrieved in a charred and crushed state, making extraction extremely challenging.

Victims and Injured Identified

Six of the eight deceased have been identified as Swati Santosh Navalkar (37), Shanta Dattatray Dabhade (54), Dattatray Chandrakant Dabhade (58), three-year-old Mokshita Hemkumar Reddy, car driver Dhananjay Kumar Koli (30) and Rohit Dnyaneshwar Kadam (25).

13 injured

1. Sofia Amjad Sayyad (15),

2. Ruksana Ibrahim Buran (45),

3. Bismilla Sayyad (38),

4. Ismail Abbas Buran (52),

5. Amol Mule (46)

6. Santosh Surve (45)

7. Sayyad Shalima Sayyad

8. Julekha Amjad Sayyad (32)

9. Amjad Sayyad (40)

10. Satish Waghmare (35)

11. Sohel Ramnuddin Sayyad (20)

12. Shamrao Pote (79)

13. Ankit Saliyan (30)

Efforts were underway to confirm the identities of the truck driver and cleaner.
Thirteen injured individuals, including minors, older persons and several members of the Sayyed family, were rushed to nearby hospitals.

Traffic Chaos and Police Response

The incident led to massive traffic snarls, prompting authorities to shut the Satara-to-Mumbai lane on Navale Bridge. Motorists were advised to take the old Katraj Ghat route, while additional police personnel were deployed to manage diversions. Senior police officials, including the city police commissioner, inspected the site as rescue operations continued late into the evening.

History of Accidents at ‘Black Spot’

Navale Bridge is classified as a “black spot” under the Integrated Road Accident Database due to repeated fatal crashes. Similar large-scale accidents have been reported in the area in 2022 and 2023, raising long-standing concerns about the steep descent and speeding vehicles.

Ex-Gratia Announced

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis called the accident “heartbreaking” and announced ₹5 lakh compensation for the families of those who died. Police have begun an investigation to determine the precise cause of the brake failure and the sequence of events leading to the tragedy.

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