Chennai, Nov 12:
A 25-year-old private factory employee died on the spot after his motorcycle plunged into an unbarricaded stormwater drain excavation along the Maduravoyal bypass service road near Ambattur late Wednesday night.
The victim, identified as Hariprasad of ICF Colony in Athipattu, was riding toward Numbal around midnight after completing his shift at an industrial unit in Pattaravakkam. Police said the poorly lit stretch lacked functional streetlights as well as warning signs or barricades around the deep pit dug for ongoing drainage construction, causing the rider to lose control in the dark and fall directly onto exposed iron reinforcement rods that pierced his head.
Alerted by a passing commuter, Ambattur Industrial Estate police and Fire and Rescue Services personnel descended into the trench using ladders to retrieve the body, though 108 ambulance paramedics confirmed he had died on impact. The body was sent to Kilpauk Government Medical College Hospital for post-mortem examination, while the Anna Nagar Traffic Investigation Wing registered a case and relatives staged protests blaming civic authorities for gross negligence.