A late-night birthday celebration turned fatal after four friends lost their lives and another was critically injured when their speeding car crashed into a tree on Siruvani Main Road near Perur Chettipalayam in Coimbatore on Thursday night.
According to police, the victims — Harish and Prakash from Thanjavur, Saba from Trichy, Agathiyan from Ariyalur, and Prabhakaran, a third-year student from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, had gathered at a private water wash company in Telungupalayam near Perur to celebrate Harish’s birthday.
It is reported that all of them consumed alcohol during the celebration. The group then allegedly took a customer’s car from the wash centre without permission and went for a late-night drive, with Prakash at the wheel.
While speeding along Siruvani Road, the car lost control near the Perur–Chettipalayam junction as Prakash swerved to avoid an oncoming vehicle. The vehicle veered off the road, hit a roadside table, and slammed into a tamarind tree.
The impact was so severe that Harish, Prakash, and Agathiyan died on the spot despite the airbags deploying. Saba and Prabhakaran were rushed to Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) with critical injuries. However, Saba succumbed without responding to treatment, while Prabhakaran remains in intensive care.
The tragic death of the young men, who had gathered for a birthday celebration, has cast a pall of grief over their families and shocked residents in Telungupalayam.
