Dense fog triggers spate of accidents across Uttar Pradesh, seven people killed

Lucknow: Dense fog blanketed a large swathe of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, bringing visibility down to almost zero and triggering a series of road accidents across the state in which seven people were killed and at least 10 others injured.

The foggy conditions, driven by an intensifying cold wave, affected more than 30 districts including Lucknow, Jaunpur, Barabanki and Unnao. In several areas, motorists reported visibility of barely 20 metres, forcing vehicles to crawl along highways and city roads with headlights on.

In Hamirpur, dense fog on the Bundelkhand Expressway led to a head-on collision between a bus and a Bolero, killing four people travelling in the Bolero and leaving three others seriously injured. In another incident in Badaun, a loader overturned on the Moradabad highway due to poor visibility, though the driver escaped without serious injuries.

In Azamgarh, two businessmen from Ghazipur were killed after their car went out of control and hit a tree in the Jahanaganj police station area. One person was injured and is undergoing treatment. Police said the victims were returning home after purchasing winter clothing from Khalilabad in Sant Kabir Nagar, and the car had to be cut open to retrieve the bodies.

Poor visibility led to at least six major accidents involving 22 vehicles. In Ghaziabad, a massive pile-up of 12 vehicles occurred on the Meerut–Delhi Expressway. The incident began with a collision between two cars, after which 10 more vehicles crashed into them one after another. Several people suffered minor injuries, and police were deployed to clear the stretch and regulate traffic.

In Unnao, a bus rammed into a container from behind on the Lucknow–Agra Expressway.