CHENNAI: Two bikes collided and burst into flames at Pullamedu village on the Chengalpet-Thirukazhukundram Road on Saturday night. Both riders died — one was charred to death trapped under his burning bike; the other succumbed to injuries in hospital. Police suspect that one of the pillion riders, there were two on one of the bikes, may have been smoking a cigarette, which sparked the blaze when the bikes collided and the fuel tanks burst open drenching the riders.Forensic experts were examining the charred remains of the two-wheelers to find out what really happened. For, one of the bikes had been remodelled as its rider Prem Kumar, 25, was a racer who used to perform stunts and police do not rule out that it could have been the source of the fuel leak.Police blame Prem Kumar for the accident, saying that while overtaking a vehicle at high speed he had moved to the lane for oncoming traffic and, hence, collided with the bike ridden by Hariharan, 28, who had two pillion riders, brothers Divakar, 15, and Nithish, 17. The three were headed from Chengalpet to Thirukazhukundram to attend a marriage.Police said Hariharan got trapped underneath his bike and passersby could not rescue him as flames had engulfed the vehicles by then. They managed to pull Prem Kumar, Nithish and Divakar free and rush them to the Chengalpet government hospital, where Prem Kumar died. Nithish and Divalar, class XII and X students respectively, have been shifted to a private hospital.A fire tender from the Thirukazhukundram rushed to the accident spot and put out the fire. By then it was too late to save Hariharan. Following the accident, traffic was thrown out of gear on the Thirukazhukundram-Chengalpet road for around half-an-hour.

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