3 Chennai college girls killed as tanker rams into crowd

CHENNAI: Three college students were killed and four others injured when a water tanker ploughed into a crowd near the SPIC building on Anna Salai on Thursday afternoon. The dead were identified as L Chitra, M Gayathri and C Asha Sruthi, all B Com students of Chellammal Woman's College in Guindy.
S Prakash, who was at the scene, said: "The water tanker was speeding and its driver lost control.I guess its brakes fai- led. The girls were standing near a petrol station when the tanker swerved to the left and hit them. It then hit a biker and an autorickshaw, swerved to the right and crashed into the road divider before coming to a halt. The driver and cleaner ju- mped off the tanker and fled."
Broken helmets and footwear were strewn near the blood-splattered accident spot. Students from the college gathered in large numbers and were seen wailing over the loss of their college mates. Gayathri's uncle, who rushed to the college on hearing of the accident, was inconsolable. L Chitra, a student, said: "It's time the traffic police put up speedbreakers on this stretch. These lives could have been saved had there been speed-breakers."
Traffic from Guindy towards Saidapet was affected for more than an hour and policemen had a tough time shooing away passersby who stopped by the accident scene.
R Omanakuttan, who was among those who sustained minor injuries, said: "I was on in my two-wheeler on the extreme left side of the road when a vehicle hit me from behind, and I was flung on to the footpath. I survived because of my helmet." The water tanker then rammed an autorickshaw driven by Subramani. "The moment something hit my vehicle from behind I jumped out. So I escaped unhurt. My vehicle is completely mangled," he said.
Chellammal college principal V G Vijayalakshmi said there is no pathway from the Guindy railway station to the college. "Students are forced to walk on the narrow footpath. When too many people are using the footpath, the students tend to step on to the road, which is a huge risk. They lost their lives for no fault of theirs," she said.
The driver of the water tanker, identified as Rajendran, was arrested and a case has been booked under Section 304 A for rash and negligent driving and causing death.