Six dead in separate road accidents in south TN

Madurai: Six people died and several others injured in two road accidents on Friday morning.
In the first accident, which occurred near Mathurapuri on the Dindigul – Kumily Bypass Road, a bus and a mini-van collided head-on, killing three and injuring 18 passengers from both vehicles.
The mini-van, with Karnataka registration, was returning from Sabarimala with devotees, while the bus, hired by Sabarimala pilgrims from Ilampillai in Salem, was travelling to Sabarimala. The mini-van driver, R Surya, 23, G Nagaraj, 40, and his son Ganesh, 7, suffered fatal injuries and died in Theni Govt Medical College Hospital. The injured hailed from the villages around Hosur. The injured from both vehicles were rescued and rushed to Theni Medical College Hospital, where they are undergoing treatment.
Allinagaram police in Theni district filed a case. Investigation revealed that the mini-van driver failed to notice the barricade placed on the road and collided with the bus while trying to avoid hitting the barricade.
In another accident that occurred at Achunthanvayal in Ramanathapuram district, an SUV and a corporation bus collided head-on. The Madurai-bound TNSTC bus was coming from Ramanathapuram when the SUV, heading to Rameswaram, attempted to overtake the truck in front and collided head-on with the bus coming from the opposite direction.
The SUV passengers, Radhakrishnan, 45, and Kuthalingam, 48, from Srivailliputur, and Chinnamuniyandi, 33, from Kadaneri in Virudhunagar district, died on the spot. Ramanathapuram B1 police rushed to the scene and rescued two more injured people from the mangled SUV, sending them to Ramanathapuram Govt Medical College, where their condition remains critical. Police are investigating.