7 from Karnataka dead in road accident near Rajapalayam

Madurai: Seven people from Karnataka were killed and two others severely injured after their car crashed into a lorry,  near Rajapalayam in Virudhunagar region on Saturday. Police said the accident took place when the driver of the car fell asleep while driving.

The deceased has been identified as Mahesh Kumar (40), his wife Ratna (30), Kalavathy (35), her daughter Deepshitha (13), Thara (20), Sangana Gowda (38) and his son Praveen. Mahesh and Lakshminarayana were employed as drivers at the Bangalore Metro Transport Corporation, police said. 

The injured Lakshminarayana (40), and Shantha (34), wife of Sangana Gowda were taken to Rajaji Government Hospital in Madurai where their conditions are said to be critical.

All the above hailed from Thotta Bomma Chandra, near Northern Bangalore. They were returning home after an excursion to Kerala in their Innova when the disaster struck them. Sangana, who was driving the vehicle, dozzed off at the worst possible time and rammed into a lorry transporting sugar from Kallakurichi to Tenkasi, police said. 

Police said six of them died at spot while Praveen breathed his last at the Rajapalayam Government Hospital. Sangana was suspected to have been driving the vehicle at a speed high over the point of limit. Sethur police have enlisted a case and captured lorry driver Ramakrishnan of Tenkasi.