Five people, including a girl child, were killed in separate road accidents in the city on Tuesday.
While four two-wheeler riders were mowed down by a cargo lorry in Kolathur in the evening, earlier in the day, the child was knocked down by a lorry, engaged by Chennai Metrowater, in Vyasarpadi.
At 6.30 p.m., the group of motorists were waiting at a signal near the Senthil Nagar police booth on Inner Ring Road, when they were hit by the lorry. “The lorry was proceeding towards Retteri. The driver seems to have lost control. All four died on the spot,” said a senior police officer. The police named the victims as Nisha Parveen (20), Naseer (60), Chandrashekar (32) and Prasad (19). The bodies were taken to Kilpauk Medical College Hospital for post-mortem.
“The driver abandoned the vehicle and fled the spot. We will nab him soon,” said the officer. Following the accident, residents have again raised the issues of poor road condition and insufficient lighting on the stretch. “It is impossible to spot people crossing the road and those waiting at the bus stop. Due to this, a number of accidents take place on this stretch,” said R. Vijay, a resident of Kolathur.
Since the road is the entry point to the city for vehicles from Kolkata and Andhra Pradesh, motorists vie for space with heavy vehicles. “It has become risky as heavy vehicles flout norms. Most of the signals do not work,” said J. Shivakumar, a resident of Padi.
Lorry driver held for girl’s death
Earlier in the morning, three-and-a-half-year-old Mahalakshmi had ventured out of her house in Kannigapuram, Vyasarpadi, around 11.30 a.m., when a lorry, leaving the street after clearing a sewage block, ran over the child, killing her on the spot.
According to the police, the victim is the only daughter of Selvam and Jamuna, both daily-wage earners. Demanding the arrest of the driver, residents of the area stopped the police from taking the body for post-mortem.
The driver, Paulraj of Kolathur, was arrested a few hours after the accident.
Further investigation is on, sources said.
