Chamarajanagar: Traffic on Chamarajanagar-Sathyamangala Road came to a standstill with hundreds of vehicles stranded for over six hours as a truck toppled on the road in the forest area at about 6.30 pm yesterday. The truck was finally cleared from the road at about 1.30 am today.

A truck carrying goods toppled on the road about two kilometres from Punajanur Check-Post yesterday evening. Meanwhile, the wheels of another goods vehicle which tried to pass the fallen vehicle got stuck in wet soil resulting in hundreds of vehicles on both sides of the road getting stranded.

Meanwhile, vehicles coming from Chamarajanagar towards Sathyamangala were stopped by the Karnataka Police at Punajanur Check-Post while vehicles coming from Sathyamanga towards Chamarajanagar, passed Hasanur but got stranded in the middle of the forest. As Karnataka Police stopped vehicles at Punajanur Check-Post, vehicles had lined up for more than three kilometres.

While some vehicles took diversion and passed via Kolipalya and Talavadi to reach Sathyamangala, many vehicles were stranded in the middle of the forest area.

Even as Karnataka Police stopped vehicles at Punajanur Check-Post, Police personnel at Bannari Check-Post failed to take any action and did not stop vehicles coming from Sathyamangala side resulting in vehicles lining up for more than 18 kilometres that too in the middle of the forest.

Wild elephants move on this road and tigers move around in Dimbam Ghat. The Tamil Nadu Forest Department has installed warning boards asking drivers and passengers not to get down from their vehicles.

A passenger, who was stuck in the middle of the forest area, told Star of Mysore that he was travelling from Coimbatore to Mysuru and his bus is stuck in the dark forest since four hours and also explained the plight of other passengers who could not get down from the bus even to attend nature’s call.

Finally at about 1.30 am today, Chamarajanagar Police, Revenue Department officials and the Forest Department officials, in a joint effort, summoned two cranes to the spot and got the toppled truck cleared from the road and also pulled another goods vehicle which was stuck in wet soil and made way for smooth flow of traffic much to the relief of those who were stranded in the middle of the forest for more than six hours.