Three persons killed on the spot and seven others injured in an accident here on Saturday. The vehicle they were travelling in got stuck at an unmanned railway level crossing and was knocked down by Guntakal-Tirupati passenger at Itlamvaripalle village of Valmikipuram mandal, about 90 km from here.
Twelve members of a same family of Absivaripalle of Kalikiri mandal were on their way to Nimmalapalle near Madanapalle to attend a function.
When they reached the level crossing, the vehicle stopped right on the tracks. Efforts by the driver to start the SUV went in vain. Meanwhile, two of the inmates of the SUV spotted the train and jumped out of the vehicle. And before others could react, the train rammed the car and dragged it to a distance of over half a km. Two women – Mumtaz (35) and Salma (29) – died on the spot while a girl child, Rafida (3), breathed her last on the way to area hospital. Seven others including three children Shafia, Vihana and Timple, received grievous injuries. The train crew, passengers and the locals rescued the injured from the mangled car and rushed them to SVRR Hospital in Tirupati. The train resumed journey after two hours.