THENI: Four people were killed and 10 others were injured after a speeding car collided head-on with another car and then crashed into a van on the Madurai-Theni highway on Monday evening.
The deceased have been identified as Murugaprabhu, 44, Sivapandi, 48, Selvam, 55, and Ramachandran, 35.
According to the police, Sivapandi, Selvam and Pandiarajan, 44, from Checkanurani in Madurai, were travelling from Theni to Madurai after attending a function. Murugaprabhu, a driver from Madurai was at the wheel.
As the car was speeding on the Madurai-Theni highway near Andipatti, Murugaprabhu lost control of the vehicle and collided head on with another car that was travelling from Madurai to Theni.
The car also hit another van carrying tourists from Kerala travelling from Madurai towards Theni.
While Murugaprabhu died on the spot, Sivapandi, Selvam and Pandiarajan were rescued and rushed to the hospital by passersby.
However, Sivapandi and Selvam died without responding to treatment at the Theni Medical College Hospital.
The driver of the other car, Ramachandran, 35, from Theni also died without responding to treatment. Pandiarajan is stated to be in a critical condition.
At least 10 others, including the tourists in the van sustained varying degrees of injuries and some are under treatment at hospitals.
Traffic was also briefly affected on the highway. The Andipatti police registered a case of rash and negligent driving and were investigating.
Police said that the deceased driver had been allegedly driving the car in a rash manner and the tire of the car appears to have burst, leading to the accident.
