Keonjhar: Three members of a family were killed and another critically injured after their SUV rammed into a tree on the roadside near Rajia village on NH-20 in Champua area of Keonjhar district on Wednesday night.The accident took place around 10 pm when the family was rushing Trilochan Apat (60) to Champua sub-divisional hospital after he developed severe stomach pain and fell critically ill. Trilochan’s son, Ranjit Apat (35), was driving the SUV and was accompanied by Trilochan’s wife Kainphula (60) and brother Bhaskar (55).According to police, Ranjit was driving through heavy rain and attempting to reach the hospital quickly due to his father’s condition when he lost control of the vehicle. The SUV veered off the highway and crashed into a tree.
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The impact severely damaged the front portion of the vehicle, trapping all four occupants inside. Locals, alerted by the loud crash, rushed to the spot and informed police. Police and fire services personnel launched a rescue operation and extricated the occupants from the mangled vehicle.Bhaskar died on the spot, police said. The other three were initially taken to Champua sub-divisional hospital and later referred to the district headquarters hospital in Keonjhar because of their critical condition. However, doctors declared Trilochan and Kainphula dead on arrival. Ranjit is undergoing treatment for multiple injuries. Police seized the bodies for postmortem. “The vehicle has been seized,” said SDPO (Champua) Rashmi Ranjan Sahoo.
The mangled SUV
People surround the mangled SUV
