Four of family mowed down by truck in UP's Barabanki

The speeding truck rammed into a tree and then crushed the family.Villagers rushed to the spot and took the injured to the district hospital.

Four members of a family were killed and one was critically injured after a speeding dumper truck ran over them while they were sleeping outside their house here in the early hours of Saturday, police said.

The accident took place around 2 am in Jhansa village under the Fatehpur police station area.

Police said the family was sleeping on the roadside due to a power outage. The speeding truck rammed into a tree and then crushed the family.

Villagers rushed to the spot and took the injured to the district hospital. Doctors declared Neeraj (35), who worked as a driver, his sons Anurag (13) and Anshu (6), and daughter Anshika (10) dead. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem, they said.

Neeraj's wife, Aarti (35), sustained serious injuries and was referred to the Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences in critical condition, they said.

Circle Officer Jagatram Kannaujia said the truck driver abandoned his vehicle and fled the spot.

Police have seized the truck and launched a search for its driver, he said.