Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI:
In a major tragedy, bodies of four persons- three men and one woman were found in the car involved in the tragedy at Zuari bridge that shocked entire Goa.
The overspeeding vehicle had reportedly hit the side railing of Zuari bridge and plunged into the river.
The car number GA 08 K 8334 that plunged into the water from Zuari bridge late night yesterday (12.45 am) was recovered from the river bed this afternoon, nearly 12 hours, after extensive search operations by the Navy, Coast Guard and Fire service personnel.
The car had plunged into the river after breaking the bridge railing last night at around 12.45 am.
The car and the deceased were pulled out of the river using a heavy crane, put into a ferry boat, and brought to the shore.
According to the information available from the Fire services officials, the names of the deceased persons are Presley D’Cruz, Henry Araujo, Olvin Araujo, and Austin Fernandes. Dead bodies have been GMC for post-mortem. Further investigation is in progress.
Earlier, Congress MLA Aleixo Sequeira, who represents the Nuvem constituency, said that a family from his constituency was reported missing and was unreachable.
“The car is said to belong to Priscilla Cruz. The car is not at the residence of the family, and the members are not traceable. I hope it is not true,” Sequeira said, adding that he wasn’t sure how many people were travelling in the car when the accident occurred.
According to eyewitnesses, the accident occurred at about 1 am on Wednesday night when the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into the balustrade, which gave way, sending the car plunging into the murky waters below.
“The Goa Police along with a coast guard vessel, barges, fire and emergency services personnel launched an operation to locate the vehicle, but could not trace it in the night due to darkness,” a police official said rescue operations started this morning.
