Devi Navaratri celebrations ended on a tragic note at Kamalapuram village in Mudigonda mandal late on October 16 night when four villagers including a woman were killed after the tractor-trolley they were travelling in overturned near the village en route to the idols immersion site.
The accident took place on the outskirts of the village on the Kamalapuram-Banapuram road around October 16 midnight.
The gory accident occurred minutes after the tractor-trolley carrying around 15 persons to a nearby lake left the village after an elaborate ceremony organised by the villagers marking the conclusion of the nine-day festive revelry.
The tractor trolley turned turtle after the driver reportedly lost control over the steering amid heavy rain due to poor visibility. Death was instant for Uma, 40, Upender, 50, Nagaraju, 29, and Swamy, 30, who were sitting in the trolley. Three other occupants of the trolley suffered multiple injuries.
The driver of the tractor-trolley fled the accident site, leaving the injured writhing in pain and screaming for help stuck in the roadside mud, amid sharp showers in the dead of the night, sources said.
It was not immediately known whether the driver was under the influence of alcohol.
Some passersby rushed to their help and informed the police who in turn shifted the injured to a nearby hospital in an ambulance late in the night. The three injured persons are in stable condition, sources added.
Uma, a resident of Hyderabad, met with a tragic end, a day after celebrating Dasara festival along with her family members in her native village.
Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader and Madhira MLA Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on October 17 consoled the bereaved family members of the four persons, who were killed in the accident.
