Bantala: A 45-yearold man died after getting trapped inside a Hume pipe while bathing in a nullah during 10th-day ritual of his brother-in-law in Anugola district.
The deceased was identified as Bimal Kumar Sahu of Jukubu village. Sahu had come to Tumuni Telitaila village under Badakera panchayat in Bantala station limits to attend the ritual.
Around 2pm Monday, after completing the ceremony, he went to the Matilia nullah to bathe. Sahu accidentally entered a pipe laid beneath an approach road. Thorny branches and debris carried by floodwaters had accumulated at the other end, trapping him inside.
Fellow bathers tried to rescue him but failed. A fire brigade team reached the spot and launched a rescue operation. Pipe was lifted using a JCB machine, but Sahu had died by then.
The incident sparked tension as locals alleged that the accident occurred due to delayed construction of a bridge over the drain and poor condition of the approach road.
Bantala police and the Badakera revenue inspector pacified residents. Sahu’s family received Rs 10,000 from the Red Cross fund. His body was sent to Anugola Headquarters Hospital for postmortem.
