Sultanpur: A journey meant to take an Army officer’s mortal remains home ended in another devastating tragedy on Sunday when an Army ambulance crashed into a stationary truck on the Purvanchal Expressway in Sultanpur district, killing four people, including three members of the deceased soldier’s family.
The accident took place at around 8 a.m. near the 79.6 km mark of the expressway in the Haliyapur area, close to the Ayodhya-Sultanpur border, police said. The ambulance was transporting the remains of Subedar Major Satyawan Singh from Chandigarh to his native village, Galiya Dudhailla, in the Rudrapur area of Deoria district.
Those killed in the crash were identified as Satyawan Singh’s son Gaurav Singh, 28; brother Rajan Chaudhary, 35; nephew Ram Samujh Singh, 40; and ambulance driver Jaspal, 30.
According to police, the ambulance apparently went out of control before striking the truck parked along the roadside. The collision was severe, leaving the front section of the ambulance badly mangled.
Gaurav Singh and driver Jaspal died at the scene. Rajan Chaudhary and Ram Samujh Singh were taken to a hospital in the Pithla-Kumarganj area of Ayodhya district, where they later succumbed to their injuries.
The accident has added another layer of grief to a family already preparing for the final rites of Satyawan Singh. The soldier, 50, had been posted in Meerut and was undergoing treatment for kidney disease at the Command Hospital in Chandigarh before his death, according to police officials.
Police teams reached the spot after receiving information about the crash and began rescue and recovery operations. The bodies of the four victims were taken into custody and sent for post mortem examinations. The families were informed about the deaths.
Sultanpur Superintendent of Police Vineet Jaiswal and District Magistrate Indrajeet Singh visited the accident site. Officials said arrangements were being coordinated with authorities in Deoria and the Army to complete the necessary formalities and send the bodies to the deceased soldier’s native place.
The remains of Subedar Major Satyawan Singh were temporarily kept at the Haliyapur police station as officials worked on further arrangements.
Police are investigating the circumstances that led to the collision. CCTV footage from the expressway is being examined to establish the sequence of events and determine how the ambulance lost control before hitting the stationary truck.
Other members of the soldier’s family were travelling separately behind the ambulance and were not reported to have been injured.
The investigation remains underway, and officials have not yet announced a definitive cause for the crash.
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