TIRUCHY: Three including a woman died in an accident on the Dindigul - Tiruchy NH after a vegetable-loaded pick-up vehicle ran over them near Idayapattiyanpatti village in the Manapparai area during the mid-night hours.
Six more pilgrims sustained injuries in the incident. All the victims were on a pilgrimage to Samayapuram Mariamman temple.
Police sources said that nearly a thousand devotees from the Ayyalur area in Dindigul took pilgrimage towards the Samayapuram Mariamman temple on Monday. The pilgrims were walking alongside the Dindigul - Tiruchy NH in the night hours.
During the mid-night hours, a loaded vehicle from Ottachathiram which was on its way to Manapparai attempted to make a turn on the curvy road near Idaiyapattiyanpatti village without noticing the pilgrims walking on the roadside.
Despite making efforts to stop the vehicle, the driver ran over about 10 pilgrims who were walking.
Two pilgrims, identified as Thirunavukkarasu of Nadupatti Sikkampatti village and Sekar of Eriyodu MGR Nagar, succumbed to fatal injuries on the spot. Seven others, including women, sustained severe injuries in the accident.
Upon receiving information, highway patrol and Manapparai police rushed to the spot and sent all the injured to Manapparai Government Hospital (GH) for treatment. Bodies of the deceased were sent to the GH for postmortem.
One pilgrim, Kaleeshwari of S. Pudupatti, was referred to Tiruchy GH for better treatment. However, failing to respond to the intensive care, she died in the morning increasing the death toll to three.
Six others are undergoing treatment at Manapparai GH. The lorry driver was arrested by the Manapparai police on Tuesday. Further investigation is underway.