A horrific chain-reaction collision, triggered by severely low visibility, claimed four lives and left at least twenty-five people injured on the Delhi-Agra Yamuna Expressway near Mathura in the early hours of Tuesday, December 16, 2025. The massive pile-up involved multiple vehicles which subsequently caught fire, leading to a complex rescue operation that required a fleet of eleven fire tenders.
Chaos in the Early Morning Fog
The tragedy unfolded around milestone 127 on the high-speed Yamuna Expressway. According to Shlok Kumar, the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) for Mathura, the primary cause was the dangerously low visibility plaguing the region. A total of seven buses and three cars collided with each other in a sequential impact, the force of which sparked a fire that quickly engulfed the damaged vehicles.
Visuals from the scene, shared by news agencies, showed several buses completely gutted by the intense flames, reducing them to charred skeletons. The rescue operation, which involved extracting victims from the burning wreckage, was a challenging endeavor for the emergency teams who rushed to the spot.
Rescue Operations and Casualty Count
Firefighting and rescue personnel worked tirelessly to bring the blaze under control and aid the victims. SSP Shlok Kumar confirmed that the rescue operation is now nearing completion. The human cost of the accident is stark: four fatalities have been officially confirmed by the authorities.
In addition to the lives lost, twenty-five individuals have been admitted to nearby hospitals for treatment of injuries sustained in the collision and the ensuing fire. The condition of some of the injured is reported to be serious, and the death toll may be revised as authorities continue their assessment.
A Region Shrouded in Hazardous Fog
This devastating accident did not occur in isolation. It comes against the backdrop of a severe fog and smog episode enveloping large parts of Uttar Pradesh. A day before the crash, cities across the state, including Agra, reported a sharp plunge in visibility and worsening air quality.
The iconic Taj Mahal in Agra was completely obscured from view due to the dense fog, with local residents describing conditions where vehicles on roads were barely visible. This persistent weather phenomenon created a perfect storm of hazardous driving conditions on the expressway, ultimately leading to the catastrophic pile-up.
Authorities are likely to reiterate warnings for drivers to exercise extreme caution, use fog lights, and reduce speed during such severe weather conditions to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
