Basti (UP): Three people died and as many were critically injured after a speeding truck hit an auto rickshaw and a car here before crashing into an electric pole, police said on Monday.
The accident occurred around 5 pm on Sunday near Hardiya crossing on the Basti-Bansi road, they said.
According to police sources, the truck went out of control and rammed into an auto rickshaw and a car before ramming into an electric pole. The impact was so severe that the pole snapped and fell onto the truck.
Three occupants of the auto rickshaw died on the spot.
Three others who were critically injured, including the truck driver Santosh Kumar, were rushed to the district hospital, where they are undergoing treatment, police said.
According to Circle Officer Satyendra Bhushan Tiwari, two of the deceased have been identified as Amarjeet (25), son of Mehilal, a resident of Khadauwa village, and Preeti Shukla (45), wife of Brijesh Shukla of Bantla village in Basti. The third deceased is yet to be identified.
Police have informed the families of the deceased and taken the truck into custody, Tiwari said.