A chemical tanker overturned and caught fire near the Kanakapura toll plaza on Bengaluru’s NICE Road on Sunday afternoon, prompting the fire department to deploy seven tenders and forcing traffic diversions on both carriageways. The driver and his assistant suffered minor injuries, while no other casualties were reported.
The tanker was travelling towards Bengaluru from Anjanapur when one of its tyres burst, according to the police. The driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle, causing it to overturn before the fire broke out.
The fire department’s control room received information about the incident at around 12.30 pm. Seven fire tenders were sent to the location to contain the blaze, which involved chemical solvents being carried by the tanker.
Firefighters brought the fire under control after more than one and a half hours. However, the flames took over five hours to be completely extinguished because of the chemical material in the vehicle, according to the report.
The incident affected traffic movement on the NICE Road, with vehicles halted for nearly 30 minutes on both carriageways. Talaghattapura traffic police diverted vehicles from the affected stretch and worked to ease the congestion.
The disruption was eventually cleared and normal traffic resumed after the fire was extinguished and the traffic diversion measures were withdrawn. The incident highlights the operational risks posed by chemical-carrying vehicles on busy urban road corridors, where a vehicle failure can quickly affect both road safety and traffic flow.
