K Srinivas Rao, sub-inspector, Pentapadu, told that the van was going from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam on Friday morning. On reaching Alampuram village, the vehicle lost balance and hit a tree.
The vehicle was carrying thionyl chloride in five containers. One of the containers leaked and caught fire. All three persons in the van were burnt alive and died.
Rao said that the deceased has been identified as P. Venkatapuram Raju (53), P Ph Kumar (27) and K Johnny (19).
Johnny is from N Kottapalli village in East Godavari district and had gone to Hyderabad to visit his sister and got stuck there due to lockdown.
Pentapadu Police have filed a case under 304A of the IPC. Further investigation is underway.
( With inputs from ANI )