5 dead in separate crashes amid morning haze on highways

Meerut: At least five people were killed and two others sustained serious injuries in two road accidents amid haze (caused by the suspension of dry particulate matter like dust and pollutants) in the early hours that reduced visibility on highways in western Uttar Pradesh.Around 7 am on Wednesday, three members of a family were killed while two were seriously injured after their car collided head-on with an Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation bus on the Bareilly–Farrukhabad highway in Shahjahanpur district. Three occupants of the car — Arun Kumar (30), Rishabh Kumar (32) and Sanjay Kumar (30) — died on the spot. All were residents of Mura Khalsa Amin Nagar village in the Mohammadi police station area of Lakhimpur Kheri district.SP Rajesh Dwivedi said the crash occurred near a sharp bend. "There was poor visibility in the morning. It is suspected that this may have contributed to the incident," he said.The injured, Anil Kumar and Gaurav, residents of Mura Bhai Chhatounia village in Lakhimpur Kheri, are currently undergoing treatment, said police.On Tuesday, two people were killed and three injured in an accident on the Meerut-Baghpat road while they were returning from a wedding. Rohit Kumar (34) of Amroha and his aunt, Suman Devi (48) of Jaunpur, died on the spot. Circle officer Ashutosh Kumar said, "Prima facie, it appears that due to haze during the early hours, the driver failed to notice a sharp turn, causing their car to veer off the road."