Death toll in Central Expressway accident increases to two

Two individuals have died while another person has sustained injuries in an accident involving a lorry carrying flour and a fuel tanker along the Central Expressway in Madurupitiya, last night.

Police stated both vehicles veered off the expressway and crashed into a nearby paddy field.

The collision occurred between a bowser traveling from Trincomalee and a lorry carrying wheat flour, also coming from Trincomalee. The vehicles had then veered off the expressway and fallen into a paddy field after breaking through the roadside barrier.

Area residents and police intervened to transport the injured to the hospital.

The assistant of the bowser died upon admission to the Mirigama Hospital, while the driver of the bowser was initially admitted to the same hospital and transferred to the Wathupitiwala Base Hospital for further treatment.

The accident occurred around 11:15 p.m. the night before last.

The driver of the lorry, who had been trapped inside the vehicle, was found after a joint effort by the fire brigade and police. He was transported to the hospital by ambulance but was pronounced dead upon extraction, according to police sources.

The deceased assistant of the bowser was a resident of Kegalle, and the lorry driver was a resident of Yapahuwa, police stated.

The Expressway Police and the Mirigama Police are jointly conducting investigations into the incident.