Firozabad (UP), Jun 29 (PTI): Five persons were killed and three injured when a neem tree fell on an e-rickshaw during a storm in a village in this Uttar Pradesh district on Monday evening, police said.

The incident occurred around 8:30 pm near Chidrai village, located within the Fariha police station limits in Jasrana tehsil.

The e-rickshaw was completely crushed, trapping the eight passengers under the tree.

Five persons were killed, while three were injured, police said.

According to District Magistrate Santosh Kumar Sharma, the e-rickshaw was travelling from Awagarh (in Etah district) towards Fariha. As it reached the Prithvipur-Chidrai village area, a sudden storm caused a large roadside neem tree to collapse on the vehicle. The e-rickshaw was crushed instantly, trapping all the passengers inside.

On receiving information, police and fire-brigade teams arrived at the scene and, with the help of villagers, arranged for a JCB machine to remove the tree. The injured were then transported to the government trauma centre by ambulance. However, five of them succumbed to their injuries before reaching the hospital.

The deceased have been identified as Gajendra (28, a resident of Batolar, Fariha), Haresh Pal (59, a resident of Nagla Fateh, Fariha), Vishnu (20, a resident of Ikhu, Fariha), Aman (17, a resident of Nagla Manda, Sakrauli, Etah) and Ganga Singh (65, a resident of Anandpur, Awagarh, Etah). The three injured individuals are currently undergoing treatment at the district hospital.

The bodies have been sent for post-mortem.

The accident caused a massive traffic jam on the road. PTI COR NAV RC

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