Miraculous escape for passenger

Mysore/Mysuru: Last evening’s heavy rains not only threw normal life out of gear but also claimed the life of an autorickshaw driver at Five Lights Circle in N.R. Mohalla here. 

The rain, which began at about 5 pm, increased gradually giving brakes in-between and continued to lash heavily till about 7.30 pm.

Following heavy rains, a huge Gulmohar Tree fell on the autorickshaw (KA-06-7095) claiming the life of auto driver Ejaz Ahmed (43), a resident of Haleemnagar in city.

Ejaz, after picking up a passenger yesterday evening, was proceeding from St. Philomena’s Church towards Five Lights Circle in N.R. Mohalla. When he came to the Circle, a huge Gulmohar tree on the roadside got uprooted and two huge branches of the tree fell on the front portion of the auto killing Ejaz on the spot.

Meanwhile, the passenger, who escaped with minor injuries, is said to have fled from the spot, according to eye witnesses, who added that as the branches had fallen on the front portion of the auto, the passenger’s life was saved.

Though the Police, Fire and Emergency Services personnel and the MCC’s Abhaya team rushed to the spot, there was a delay of about an hour in clearing the tree and retrieving the body of Ejaz from the auto due to heavy downpour, which angered the public.

Finally, the body of Ejaz was removed from the auto and shifted to K.R. Hospital and after the doctors declared him dead, the body was shifted to MMC&RI mortuary for post-mortem.

ACP (Traffic) S.E. Gangadharaswamy, Lashkar Inspector Suresh Kumar, Devaraja Traffic Inspector Muniyappa, District Fire Officer Shivaswamy and staff Siddegowda, Shankar, Pramod, Mahesh, Shivappa, Venkappa, Thomas and others visited the spot.

Protest: Meanwhile, the public, led by SDPI leader Abdul Majeed staged a protest near the mortuary holding the MCC responsible for the death of Ejaz due to delay in rescue works. 

The public demanded pruning of weak tree branches and removal of weak trees to prevent them from falling on moving vehicles besides demanding adequate compensation to the family members of deceased Ejaz.

MCC’s ADC Roopa, who visited the spot, assured the protestors of providing compensation from the Disaster Relief Fund besides stating that providing compensation from the Social Security Scheme would be put before the Committee.

The ADC also said that the MCC officials would visit the family of the deceased and extend help to the family members and added that action would be taken against MCC officials and staff if there was dereliction in performing their duties, following which the protest was taken back. 

Trees uprooted at various places: Meanwhile, the heavy downpour uprooted trees at many places and also huge weak tree branches came crashing down on the roads causing traffic jams. Also, rainwater flooded houses in low-lying areas and the residents had a tough time removing water from their houses.

Trees and branches came crashing down at Five Lights Circle, near Mahadeshwara Temple in Sunnadakeri, opposite Ambedkar Bhavan near Devaraj Urs Road and other places hampering smooth flow of traffic. Rainwater also flooded prominent roads such as M.G. Road and Adichunchanagiri Road causing inconvenience to the motorists and pedestrians.