Three persons died on the spot when the sports utility vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a tomatoes-laden lorry coming in the wrong direction on National Highway No.44 near Gooty in Anantapur district in the early hours of August 2.
The Gooty Circle Inspector said that the accident took place at 4.30 a.m. The deceased were identified as Ashraf Ali, 68, and Layak Ali, 45, of Gulbarga and Khasim Mohammed of Kurnool. They were travelling to Kurnool from Bengaluru.
The collision between the vehicles was so powerful that the victims were trapped in the badly-damaged SUV. The lorry turned on its side on the highway carriageway, blocking traffic with an entire load of tomatoes scattered on the road.
The Gooty police, on getting information, rushed to the spot and began controlling and diverting the traffic. A case has been registered. A search for the lorry driver is on. It was not clear if those in the lorry were also injured.
