An 18-year-old boy, R. Madan Kumar, was buried alive when a portion of sand caved in when he was smuggling sand from the Vaippar riverbed near Sattur around Monday midnight.
Two other boys, who were also scooping out sand at the location, escaped unhurt the police said.
The deceased along with another Plus Two boy M. Neraipandi (18) and a diploma student V Ramadas (19), all from O. Mettupatti, had gone to the Vaippar river at around midnight to smuggle sand near Gurulingapuram.
While Madan Kumar was digging the sand out standing inside a five-foot-deep pit, the other two were reportedly filling it in sacks. They had already filled at least half a dozen bags, the police said.
All of a sudden, the mound of sand caved in and buried Madan Kumar inside the pit. The other two could not save him.
After being alerted, the police and fire service personnel rushed to the spot and retrieved his body at around 2 a.m.
“The body was buried at least five-foot depth. He had sustained injuries to his face,” the Station Fire Officer (Sattur), T. Venkatachalam, said. The body has been taken to the Government hospital.
The Sattur Town police are investigating the incident.
