Unnao: Three people were burnt alive and another suffered serious injuries when a dumper and truck collided head-on in Unnao district early Wednesday, police said.

The crash took place around 3 am on the Hardoi-Unnao road near Mari Company turn in the Bangarmau area. The impact of the collision caused both vehicles to burst into flames, trapping those inside.

Police said the dumper heading towards Hardoi collided with a truck coming from the opposite direction and the impact triggered a fire in both vehicles.

Bangarmau police station in-charge Chandrakant Singh said a police team and the fire brigade rushed to the spot and managed to douse the flames after strenuous efforts.

Those killed in the accident were identified as dumper driver Pawan Yadav of Chaura village in Kanpur Dehat, his assistant Sumit of Chhaunk village in Jalaun, and truck driver Mahipal (about 50), a resident of Maher ka Madaiya in Sambhal district.

Truck helper Sonu (25) of Fatehpur Utma village in Sambhal sustained serious burn injuries and was admitted to a community health centre after initial treatment, the SHO said.

The bodies of the deceased have been sent for postmortem, he said.

Officials said the damaged vehicles were later removed from the road with the help of a crane.

The accident led to a massive traffic jam for nearly three hours, which was cleared after the fire was brought under control around 6 am.