A truck driver suffered minor injuries after a vehicle carrying straw caught fire coming into contact with a live overhead cable in Ladavaram village on Wednesday.

The police said that the driver S. Ravi, 46, a native of Walajah, managed to jump off the vehicle before the driver’s cabin caught fire. The truck was carrying straw from Vellore to Tirupattur. When the truck reached a government school in the village, the straw touched the low-lying live cable that triggered a fire.

The villagers who noticed this drew the attention of the driver to the fire. Residents alerted the fire and rescue services officials from Arcot, who put out the flames. They battled for nearly an hour to bring the fire under control.

The truck was not completely gutted as the bundles of straw were thrown off the vehicle. A case was registered by Arcot Taluk police and a probe is under way.