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MANGALORE: Eight persons died and three suffered severe burns in a fire that broke out after an LPG tanker overturned on the Mangalore-Bangalore national highway at Perne, near Uppinangady, 65 km from here. The incident occurred at 9.30am on Tuesday.
 
The dead have been identified as Guruvappa (30); Shobha (45); Chaitresh (5), Shobha’s son; Vanitha (38); Sunil (5), Vanitha’s son; tanker driver Selvarasu from Tamil Nadu; and Khateejamma (40). All except Vasanth and Khateejamma, who died in a hospital, were burnt alive.
 
The tanker was transporting 16 tonnes of LPG for Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL).
 
The injured are Indira Rai, 50; Vimala, 29; Safiya aliad Khateejamma (all of whom suffered 40-60% burns).Van driver Vasanth, 30, who was hospitalized with 100% burns died at 7.30 pm.
 
Vasanth was delivering bakery products to a petty shop when his Omni van caught fire. Eyewitnesses said the driver was given first aid by locals before being taken to hospital.
 
As soon as the tanker overturned at a sharp curve, flash fires erupted in a 300-metre radius. Eight houses, petty shops and a garage were engulfed in the flames, the eyewitnesses said. Residents of a house who could not react quickly were burnt alive.
 
HPCL officials said: "It would be premature to speculate on the cause. An investigation will be conducted to determine the cause of the fire."
 
The condition of some people who managed to flee the area with burns is not known. Four vehicles were damaged.
 
At least 13 fire engines were pressed into service. Traffic on the highway was cut off from 9.30am to 2.30pm.
 
Chief fire officer HS Varadarajan said: "The blaze was so intense that everything in a 300-metre radius was burnt, including houses and trees. We got the message around 10.10am. We first sent fire engines from Bantwal and Puttur, and then from Mangalore, Belthangady, Moodbidri and Karkala. The scene reminded me of the air crash of May 22, 2010.’’
 
Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner Harsh Gupta has announced a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to the next of the kin of those who died in the disaster. A release from his office said people who had suffered more than 50% burns would also be given Rs 1 lakh, while those with less than 50% burns would be given Rs 50,000 each.
 
The officer said efforts would also be made to get relief from HPCL.