A tanker carrying fly ash crashed into the guardrails of Vidyasagar Setu and landed on the perimeter wall of Fort William at Hastings on Thursday morning.

Police said the tanker was headed towards Kidderpore. It swerved near the point where the Calcutta-bound ramp of the bridge bifurcates towards Esplanade and Hastings.

The driver and the helper were injured.

Some footpath dwellers beneath the bridge were alerted by the deafening sound of the tanker landing on the concrete wall around 6.30am.

The driver’s cabin came off from the main body of the tanker as an impact of the fall.

Alarmed by the sound of the tanker crashing through the boundary wall, a team of armed military personnel, who were on their morning shift, immediately reached the spot and cordoned the area. Senior officers, who arrived at the spot later, found the driver and his assistant groaning in pain, trapped inside the driver’s cabin.

Police control in Lalbazar was informed along with Hastings police station and a team of police officers arrived at the spot. They shifted the two injured to SSKM Hospital. A case of rash and negligent driving has been filed against the driver.

The vehicle has been sent for mechanical tests.

“The driver, Inamul Haque, hails from Ratua in Malda and is around 30 years old. He received injuries on his head and chest,” said a senior police officer. “The assistant, Arif Hossain, is aged 18 years and hails from Malda too. He received injuries on his hands and chest.”