Bhubaneswar, July 29: Reckless driving claimed two lives and left one person injured at the crossing of NH-203 and NH-5 at Rasulgarh Square here this afternoon.

A truck, which was coming from the Mancheswar side on NH-5, hit four two-wheelers while taking a turn towards Bomikhal.

Soon after the accident, a mob blocked the highways bringing traffic to a halt at the busy junction. Local people also thrashed the truck driver before handing him over to police.

One of the victims, Krushna Chandra Debata, 50, of Sundergarh, died on the spot, while Sachitra Pradhan, 40, of Rasulgarh, succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital.

The injured person was identified as Lalit Mohan Patra, 25, of Samantarapur. Patra, an MBA student, was rushed to Capital Hospital and was later taken to a private hospital for treatment. However, he was released later in the day. Debata was an assistant commercial tax officer in Phulbani, while Pradhan was a grocery shop owner at Rasulgarh.

Eyewitnesses said the truck took a sharp turn just after emerging out of the Rasulgarh Square truck terminal, where construction of a fly over bridge has been going on for more than a year.

“The truck hit Debata’s motorcycle first and crushed him under its wheels. Debata was coming from the Vani Vihar side,” said Durllav Rath, a motorcyclist, who had a narrow escape as he was a few metres away from the truck.

Debata, who had come to meet his family at Pandara on the city outskirts, was heading towards his local residence.

Debata’s wife Bijayalaxmi said her husband had come to Bhubaneswar two days ago to meet them here.

“He has gone to the city for some work and was returning home when the accident occurred,” she said.

The truck then hit another motorcycle, but its rider managed to jump off the bike saving his life. It then hit Patra’s motorbike. Patra sustained injuries on his leg and back.

“As onlookers started shouting and chasing the truck, it tried to flee towards Bomikhal and hit Pradhan’s two-wheeler on NH-203. It ran over Pradhan, who suffered severe injuries in the abdomen,” said Arakshit Rout, a local trader and an eyewitness to the accident.

The injured persons were immediately rushed to Capital Hospital, where Debata was declared brought dead. Pradhan was shifted to a private hospital after preliminary treatment at Capital Hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries soon after.

More than 200 people blocked the highways following the accident. It took more than 45 minutes for police to remove the blockade. The police managed to disperse the mob after the damaged vehicles were removed from the spot. Assistant commissioner of police Bishnu Mishra said the driver, identified as Jayadev Mohapatra, 22, of Khurda, was arrested from the spot.

“The vehicles were immediately removed from the spot, giving no time for the mob to set the truck on fire. The driver has been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder and rash driving on a road endangering human life,” said Mishra.

The truck driver, however, said that the brakes of his vehicle had failed and he could not control it, which led to the accidents. His claim is being verified.