One person was killed on the spot and four others were injured when the car they were travelling in fell into a 700-foot-deep gorge near Mayiladumparai on Batlagundu-Kodaikanal Ghat Road in the early hours of Wednesday.
The deceased was Chelladurai (33) of BB Kulam in Madurai. The body was retrieved and sent to Kodaikanal Government Hospital.
On hearing the cry of the injured, local people alerted police. The vehicle could not be traced in the deep gorge. Fire and Rescue Services personnel climbed down into the gorge using ropes and lifted the injured to the road. Rescue operation took place for more than two hours. Traffic was disrupted on this road for sometime.
The injured – Hariharan (22), Gunasekaran (45), Raja (35) and Suresh Kumar (35) of Goripalayam in Madurai – were admitted to Kodaikanal and Pannaikadu Government Hospitals.
The police said the tourists departed from Kodaikanal around 4.30 a.m. to go to Madurai. Heavy mist and minor showers that covered the road could have disrupted the vision of the driver. The car crashed against a barricade and fell into the gorge.
