TIRUPPUR: Six people were killed on Wednesday after an SUV drove into a policeman and truck driver before crashing into a parked truck on the Coimbatore-Tiruchy National Highway near Vellakovil in Tiruppur district.
The deceased were identified as: P Ravichandran (36), of Kamarajapuram in Dharapuram, a second-grade police constable attached to Vellakovil station; R Senthil (48), truck driver, of Panruti in Cuddalore; R Ram (22), taxi driver, of Alangulam in Virudhunagar; R Narasimhan (65), a cook, of Ottrai Theru in Mayiladuthurai, his wife Santhalakshmi (62) and their son Balaji (29).
Balaji lived with his wife in Pappanaickenpalayam in Coimbatore where he was a priest at a Srinivasa Perumal Temple. On Tuesday night, Balaji and his parents left from Mayiladuthurai to Coimbatore in a hired SUV driven by Ram.
‘SUV driver likely fell asleep’
Senthil left for Vellakoil on Tuesday night, carrying a load of casuarina logs in a truck.
“On Wednesday, at 3.30 am, the truck Senthil drove rammed into the barricade near a checkpost on the Tiruchy-Coimbatore NH in Kurukkathi village,” police said. Ravichandran, who was on duty at the checkpost, stopped the truck.
“While the policeman and the truck driver were placing the barricade back at the same spot, the SUV hit them and crashed into the rear of the parked truck,” police added. The SUV’s four occupants, the truck driver and cop were killed.
“The bodies of the deceased have been sent to the Tiruppur Government Medical College Hospital for postmortem examination. It is suspected the taxi driver fell asleep at the wheel,” an officer said. Vellakovil police have registered a case.
Ravichandran is survived by his wife and two children. CM C Joseph Vijay ordered a compensation of Rs 30 lakh to Ravichandran’s family and a solatium of Rs 3 lakh each for the families of the other deceased persons.