TIRUVARUR: A pilgrimage to Velankanni turned tragic for a group of seven friends from Kerala when their omni van collided head-on with a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus on the East Coast Road near Karuveppanchery of Tiruvarur district on Sunday morning, leaving four dead and three critically injured.
The crash occurred around 6.30 am when the driver of the van, carrying the pilgrims from Thiruvananthapuram and nearby areas, lost control after crossing a barricade and rammed into a TNSTC bus en route to Erwadi in Ramanathapuram from Nagapattinam. The impact was so severe that the van was completely mangled. The deceased were identified as Sajinath (25), who was driving the van, Rajesh (30), Rahul (29), and Sujith (25).
Police said all four died on the spot due to the impact of the collision. Three others — Sabu (25), Sunil (35), and Rajinish (40) — sustained grievous injuries and were rushed to Tiruvarur Government Medical College Hospital for treatment.
According to Edaiyur police, the victims were contractual construction workers from Kerala who had come for a pilgrimage to Velankanni. A case was registered, and Saravanan, the bus driver, was detained for questioning. Further probe is on to determine the exact cause of the accident.
SP visits accident site to assess situation
Tiruvarur Superintendent of Police Karun Garad and TNSTC Nagapattinam Division General Manager Raja visited the accident site to assess the situation. Relatives of the deceased and the injured arrived in Tiruvarur by Sunday night. The bodies have been kept at the medical college mortuary for post-mortem scheduled to be conducted on Monday.