COIMBATORE: Nine tourists from Kerala, including seven women and a 14-year-old boy, died on Friday evening after their van plunged into an 800-foot-deep gorge on the Valparai-Pollachi ghat road. Four others, including two children and the driver, remain in critical condition.
The victims, a group of 13 teachers and staff of a private school in Perinthalmanna, Malappuram district, had visited Valparai on April 14 for the Vishu holidays. The accident occurred around 5.15 pm at the 13th hairpin bend during their return journey. Police stated that the driver, A Mohammed Fasith, 21, lost control of the vehicle, which then veered off the road and rolled down several levels before crashing near the ninth hairpin bend.
The impact left the van mangled, with several passengers thrown out of the vehicle. Passersby alerted the Kadamparai police, who launched a rescue operation alongside forest department personnel. The injured and the deceased were moved to the Pollachi Government Hospital.
Nine staff members of a Kerala school were killed and four injured after their van plunged into an 800-foot gorge in Valparai on Friday while returning from a Vishu holiday
The deceased have been identified as Ajitha, 54, Ramla, 52, Suhara, 3, Asha, 41, Majith, 43, Sajitha, 45, Shakeela, 37, Ruhiya, 39, and Haydeen, 14.
Coimbatore District Collector Pavankumar G Giriyappanavar visited the hospital to monitor the survivors' treatment. Traffic on the ghat road was disrupted for several hours as teams cleared the wreckage. Police are investigating the cause of the accident.