TIRUPATI: Nine persons have been killed and 15 injured in separate road accidents in Annamayya and Chittoor districts.
In the first incident, a family hailing from Odisha had been travelling in an ambulance after one of them underwent treatment at Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru. The ambulance crashed into a stationary lorry on the Puthalapattu-Naidupeta national highway at Tellagundlapalli village in Thavanampalli mandal of Chittoor district.
Four of the family members died on the spot and two others injured. The deceased have been identified as Umesh Chandra Sahu (46), the patient, Trilokchand Naik (63), Rashmita Sahu (45), and Vijaya Naik (56), all residents of Khurda Road in Odisha.
In the other incident, five pilgrims, including three women, lost their lives and 11 suffered injuries when a Toofan vehicle collided with a truck near Matampalle village in K.V. Palle mandal of Annamayya district.
According to police, the pilgrims from Karnataka were on their way back home from Tirumala when the mishap occurred. They had previously visited Srisailam Temple and had hoped to worship Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala. However, as they could not secure a darshan slot, they decided to return to their home town Belagavi in Karnataka when the accident occurred.
The deceased have been identified as Shobha (36), Ambika (14), driver Hanumanthu (45), Mananda (35), and Hanumanth (38). Eleven others suffered injuries, four of whom are serious and undergoing treatment at SVR Ruia Hospital in Tirupati.
