Major accident during religious festival in Sri Lanka, uncontrolled truck crushed the crowd

Colombo. A major accident has occurred in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka. In fact, during the major Vesak festival of Buddhism on the outskirts of Colombo, an uncontrolled truck crushed a crowd of people, in which six people died tragically and 13 others were seriously injured. According to the police, the driver of the truck was driving under the influence of alcohol and in his drunken state, he crushed the crowd of people celebrating.

The incident occurred on Sunday night in Meegoda area of ​​Colombo, where a large number of people were standing in queue outside a free food stall set up as part of Vesak celebrations. Meanwhile, a speeding pickup truck entered the crowd. According to the police, the deceased include three men aged between 35 to 38 years and three women aged between 15 to 56 years. 13 people including a child have been seriously injured in the accident, who have been admitted to the hospital.

The 42-year-old driver fled from the spot after the accident, but the police chased him for several kilometers and arrested him. Preliminary investigation revealed that he was driving under the influence of alcohol. Vesak is considered to be the most important festival of Buddhism, which is celebrated to commemorate the birth, attainment of enlightenment and Mahaparinirvana of Lord Buddha. On this occasion, devotees across Sri Lanka set up stalls of free food and beverages, where people gather in large numbers.