SUV washed away by strong currents, 11 bodies recovered Guntur, Dec 8 (INN): District police on Wednesday managed to retrieve the bodies of 11 of the 13 persons who were washed away by the gushing waters of a stream near Pittambanda village of Vinukonda mandal on Tuesday. The district police had launched search operations to trace the 13 persons after the SUV in which they were travelling was washed away by the strong currents in the Ummadivagu, a tributary of River Krishna. Vinukonda Rural Circle Inspector B Nageswara Rao revealed that 16 persons, including six children were on board the Tata Sumo when the mishap took place. The villagers managed to rescue three persons. These three were identified as Anil, Koteswara Rao and Pothuraju.
The SUV was heading from Karampudi to Addanki in Prakasam district after the passengers participated in 'Palnadu Utsavalu'. The villagers told police that they had warned the SUV driver Anil not to take the risk of crossing the river due to the strong currents. They said that he disregarded their warnings and went ahead, trying to cross the river. Mr Nageswara Rao told INN that the identities of deceased are yet to be ascertained. The police are making efforts to trace the remaining bodies, he stated. Meanwhile, traffic between Guntur and Amaravathi and Vijayawada and Amaravathi has been disrupted following spate of rivulets due to heavy rains.
News Posted: 8 December, 2010
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