KOCHI: Two women were killed after being knocked down by a pickup van while they were trying to cross the road at Athani, in Kochi, early on Monday.
The deceased are identified as Sheeba Satheesan, 52, and Mariamma, 52 -- both working as canteen employees of Kerala Agro Machinery Corporation Ltd (KAMCO), Athani.
The accident occurred around 7 a.m. when the duo were crossing the road to reach KAMCO from home, which is just 1.5 km away from the company.
The Nedumbassery police, which registered a case, also took Velu, the driver of the pickup van, into custody. "The accident took place when the duo were trying to cross the road to reach KAMCO, where they were working. A pickup van that was proceeding towards Aluva from Thrissur knocked the women down. Both were severely injured and died on the spot," said a police officer.
The police said the rash driving of the pickup van resulted in the accident. "The driver of the van seems to have dozed off behind the wheel. There are no brake marks on the road, and this means he might have dozed off when the accident happened. We need to investigate whether the driver was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. A case of culpable homicide was initiated," said the officer.
The police said the bodies of both people were shifted to Kalamassery Medical College for autopsies.