A midnight hunger run to Murthal turned into unspeakable tragedy in the early hours of Thursday when two cousins—Henry (20) and Dipanshu Chandela (21)—were burned alive inside their Toyota Fortuner after a catastrophic rear-end collision with a truck in Delhi’s Rani Bagh area. The high-speed impact locked the SUV’s front end under the truck’s chassis, dragging it nearly 500 meters along the dark highway before a ruptured fuel line ignited an inferno that left no chance of escape.

Eyewitnesses described a scene of horror: sparks flying from the scraping metal, followed by a sudden explosion of flames that engulfed the vehicle within seconds. The truck driver, unaware of the collision at first, only stopped when other motorists honked frantically and waved him down. By then, the Fortuner was a raging fireball, its occupants trapped inside.

Police reached the spot within minutes of a 3:10 a.m. PCR call, but fire tenders struggled to approach due to intense heat. It took over 30 minutes to douse the blaze. When firefighters finally pried open the mangled wreckage, they recovered two charred bodies—later identified through dental records and personal items by grieving relatives.

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Henry, a second-year BBA student pursuing studies in Pune, had returned to Delhi just days earlier for a short break. His father, who runs a mobile tower installation business, had already endured unbearable loss—Henry’s elder brother died in a road accident years ago at the same tender age. “We never imagined lightning would strike twice,” a family member whispered outside the mortuary.

Dipanshu, enrolled in a BBA program at a Rohini college, was the only son of a local property dealer. Known for his cheerful demeanor and love for late-night drives, he leaves behind his parents and a younger sister still in school. “He just said, ‘We’ll be back in two hours,’” his mother recalled, clutching his college ID card.

The detained truck driver told investigators he felt a sudden jolt but assumed it was a tire burst until he saw flames in his rearview mirror. Preliminary findings suggest the Fortuner was traveling at high speed—possibly over 100 km/h—on a poorly lit stretch prone to heavy vehicle traffic. CCTV footage from nearby toll plazas is being analyzed to reconstruct the final moments.

Delhi Police have registered a case under sections of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and rash driving. A mechanical inspection of both vehicles is underway to check for brake failure, tire burst, or structural defects in the Fortuner. Blood samples from the truck driver have been sent for alcohol and drug testing.

Road safety experts point to recurring dangers on this corridor: overloaded trucks, patchy street lighting, and a lack of median barriers. “This stretch sees multiple fatal crashes every year,” said a traffic official. “High-speed rear-end collisions with heavy vehicles almost always end in tragedy—especially at night.”

As the families prepare for last rites, the incident has reignited calls for stricter night-time speed enforcement, mandatory reflective markings on trucks, and improved emergency response on outer Delhi highways. For two promising young lives cut short in a blaze of fire and twisted metal, justice—and prevention—cannot come soon enough.

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