Three devotees on padayatra from Sankarankoil mowed down by lorry near Sattur

Three devotees on padayatra from Sankarankoil to Mariamman temple in Irukkangudi were killed when a speeding lorry mowed them down on Kovilpatti-Sattur highway in the early hours of Friday, August 2, 2024.

The deceased were identified as M. Murugan (45), B. Mahesh (35) and M. Paunraj (45) of Mela Neelithanallur in Tenkasi district. 

The police said that a group of some 50 devotees had set on padayatra to Mariamman temple near Sattur in connection with Aadi Friday festival. 

The devotees had been walking in different batches on the Tirunelveli-Madurai highway near N. Venkatachalapuram junction near Sattur when a speeding truck hit them at around 1.30 a.m.

All the three were killed on the spot. The bodies were kept in Government hospital in Kovilpatti for postmortem.

The driver of the lorry, M. Manikandan, had reportedly told the police that he failed to notice the devotees walking on the road due to the glare of high beam lights from the vehicles coming on the opposite lane.