Rayagada/Keonjhar: A total of nine people were killed Wednesday while five others were injured in two different road mishaps in the districts of Rayagada and Keonjhar. In the first accident, six persons died on the spot and two others suffered serious injuries when a truck rammed into an auto-rickshaw near Rayagada. All the persons in the auto-rickshaw were residents of Andhra Pradesh. They had come to attend a marriage function in Rayagada and were returning to Kamarada village in Andhra Pradesh when the accident occurred.
Among the dead were four women. Five of the deceased were identified as Meleka Sharada (31), Meleka Amudu (44), Huika Laxmi (45), Huika Narasama (42), and Meleka Venkat (59). The identity of the sixth deceased is yet to be ascertained. The two injured have been shifted to a hospital in Vizianagaram as their conditions deteriorated. Police said that a truck coming from Parvathipuram hit the auto near Cholapadar. The collision was so hard that the three-wheeler was completely mangled. Among those injured is the driver.
Police have launched a probe to ascertain the cause of the accident. In another accident reported late in the evening Wednesday three persons lost their lives and three others suffered serious injuries after an SUV rammed into the rear of a stationary truck on Barabanka road under Rugudi police limits in Keonjhar district. Among the deceased were two men and a woman and all were occupants of the SUV. The injured have been shifted to the Keonjhar DHH.
