Three persons, including a woman and a two-year-old, died when the car in which they were travelling nosedived 30-feet from the Thoppur Bridge on the ghat section connecting Salem and Dharmapuri on National Highway-7, on Monday. The police have identified the deceased as K. George (35) of Thiruvalla in Kerala, wife Sumi Susan (32), and their son Sebin (2). George is a software engineer in Bangalore.
Their elder son Alwin (5) suffered multiple fractures. George’s friend Anish (32) who drove the vehicle suffered injuries. They were undergoing treatment in a private hospital in Salem, the police said.
They were returning to Bangalore after spending the weekend in their hometown.
Mr. Anish lost control of the vehicle after the car climbed the median on the highway.
The police said that George who was seated next to the driver, and Sebin who was sitting behind with his mother, died on the spot. Sumi died on way to the Dharmapuri GH.
Praveen Kumar (31) and his friends working in the shops near the accident site said that they heard a loud sound around 5am. “We though it could be a usual tyre burst as no vehicle could be seen,” he told The Hindu .
“A villager who went below the bridge saw the vehicle and informed us. Initially four persons were found in the vehicle. Alwyn was spotted alive after the body of George was removed,” he added.
Earlier there was confusion as to who should register a case — as one end of the bridge was in Salem and the other in Dharmapuri. The Salem police, later, registered the case.
