ERODE: Four youths died and one more suffered grievous injury after their car rammed into a tree near Sathyamangalam early on Monday. The deceased were identified as B Keerthivel Durai, 25, a resident of Elur near Gobichettipalayam, and his friends R Mayilanandan (24), M Poovarasan (24), and M Ragavan (26). Police sources said the victims may have been drunk at the time of the accident. Their postmortem results are awaited.
Police said Keerthivel Durai, a temple priest, and his friends burst firecrackers till midnight on Sunday. After the celebration, they decided to go to Shenbagapudur located 7km away to have tea. Around 12.30 am, when they were driving near Vedachinnanur on the Sathyamangalam-Coimbatore National Highway, S Ilayaraja (26), who was driving the car, lost control and dashed the vehicle against a tamarind tree.
Condition of another victim remains critical
While Keerthivel Durai, Mayilanandan and Poovarasan died on the spot, Ragavan and Ilayaraja were seriously injured. Locals rescued them and sent the injured to Sathyamangalam Government Hospital for treatment. Ragavan died on the way to hospital. Ilayaraja, who was admitted to the government hospital, was later shifted to a private hospital in Gobichettipalayam in Coimbatore. He is critical, the police said.