CHENNAI: Three including a woman from Avadi died in separate accidents near Puliangudi, 8 others struggle for life

Chennai: Three persons, who were part of groups returning from Courtallam waterfalls, died in separate accidents near Puliangudi. Venkateswaran (65) of Annanur near Avadi, his wife Hemalatha (60) and their son Madhavan (29), were part of a group of eight travellers who had visited Courtallam in Tenkasi district and were on their way back to Chennai late on June 15 when their car collided with a lorry on the Tenkasi-Rajapalayam road at Punnaiyapuram.
The collision caused severe front damage to the car and all the eight passengers were trapped inside the car. Based on the alert, a team of officials from the Chokkampatti police station rushed to the spot and rescued the injured victims who were rushed to the Tenkasi Government Hospital. However, Hemalatha succumbed shortly after being admitted, while the remaining seven passengers are currently in intensive care. Meanwhile, in a separate incident, Baskaran (36), a soldier from Srivilliputhur, and his friends were involved in a fatal accident. Baskaran, along with his friends Marimuthu (33) Sattur and Krishnaraja (35) Kalugumalai had gone to Courtallam and were returning home at 3 am on June 16 when their car collided with a roadside tree near Puliangudi. Baskaran and Krishnaraja died as a result of the accident, while Marimuthu was seriously injured and is currently admitted in a critical condition at the Tenkasi Government Hospital. The Puliangudi police have sent the bodies for post-mortem and are investigating.