On Monday, May 19, five people died, and two others, including the driver, were injured when their car fell into the Jagbudi River on the Mumbai-Goa highway in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra.
The incident happened in the early hours at 5 am. The occupants were travelling from Mumbai (Mira Road) to Devrukh to attend a funeral ceremony.
The police identified the deceased as Mitali Vivek More, 43; Megha Paradkar, 22; Saurabh Paradkar, 22; Nihar More, 19; and Shreyas Sawant, 23.
The cause of the accident was not known yet. As per preliminary reports, the car lost control, skidded off and fell 100 to 150 feet into the river.
The locals who heard the loud sound of the vehicle falling into the river rushed to the spot, said the police.
On finding the vehicle in the river, they alerted the authorities, following which cranes were used to pull the vehicle out and rescue the passengers. The police had a tough time retrieving the bodies from the mangled car.
They were rushed to the hospital for treatment, however, declared dead upon arrival.
The case is being further investigated to identify the root cause of the accident.