But eight people died in a road accident that has rocked Kerala and Tamil Nadu in a car crash that left eight people dead when it crashed into a parked lorry on National Highway 66 in Thrissur district early on Saturday, a tragic road accident that shocked Kerala and Tamil Nadu and left Kerala’s people in grief.
The deadly crash happened in Panampikkunnu on Kaipamangalam near Panampikkunnu in Kerala, not far from Panampikkunnu, on the weekend when the two people were tourists seeking a holiday there. There has been a government investigation to find out what took place and what caused the accident.
According to police officials, the accident happened at about midnight when the car travelled from Guruvayur side towards Kodungallur and crashed into the rear of a stationary goods lorry parked on a stretch of the highway where road construction work was going on. The car was so mangled that there was little chance of survival for those inside it.
All eight people who were in the car, apparently, died at the time, as is believed. Seven died at the scene, and another died at the hospital, but another patient died in a nearby hospital. They were students from Tamil Nadu, and identification documents indicated that the victims were from an engineering college in Dindigul, as they were found to be students. But the police have not yet identified all of the bodies and notified families.
#WATCH | Keralam: Eight people killed after a car rammed into the rear of a parked goods lorry on the National Highway at Kaipamangalam in Thrissur district. The accident occurred around midnight at Panambikunnu Centre.
— ANI (@ANI) September 5, 2026
Visuals from the spot. pic.twitter.com/751qMvvGjC
Emergency workers, including police, firefighters and residents, rushed to the accident site as soon as information about the crash was received. Rescue teams had a big problem because the force of the impact had crushed the car, and fire and rescue service workers had to dig out the wreckage using specialised equipment to get the victims out. The bodies were brought to nearby hospitals for post-mortem examination.
The authorities are looking into various angles to determine what caused the death of the victims. Speed could have been the issue. The accident is believed to have resulted from excessive speed, residents have said. That stretch of Highway 66 is still being constructed, and the road where the crash occurred has seen a number of accidents recently. There were several lorries parked along the roadside at the time of the crash, and safety concerns about highway safety and traffic management in construction zones are being considered at the site of the incident.
The accident has reignited discussions about road safety, particularly at night, especially in the vicinity of construction sites. Safety experts have long warned of the dangers of parked heavy vehicles on highways, particularly in poorly lit areas or near construction sites. The incident has also highlighted the importance of speed limits and driving with caution when driving through work zones.
The deaths of the eight young passengers have left families and communities devastated. Messages of condolence have poured in from many quarters, and authorities are promising a thorough investigation into the tragedy. CCTV footage, vehicle conditions and road safety measures in the vicinity will be reviewed by investigators to determine the exact sequence of events leading up to the crash, they said.
Kerala will know about this as the deadliest road accident in Kerala so far this year, as it is another reason why highways need to be safer, and motorists need to be more vigilant.
