The thirteen pilgrims travelling in a van had a providential escape today after the van crashed into the parapet wall of the Pamban road bridge and hung tilting towards the deep sea below it.
The pilgrims , all hailing from Kallurani village near Aruppukottai in Virudhunagar district, were on their way to the world renowned Sri Ramanatha Swamy temple in Rameswaram in a hired van. While passing the Pamban road bridge, connecting Rameswaram island with the mainland, the van lost control of the driver and got stuck with the front portion of the vehicle tilting towards the deep sea below.
The panicky pilgrims managed to come out of the vehicle through the emergency door on its back. Luckily no one was injured. Eye witnesses said that the pilgrims had a providential escape as the vehicle’s rear wheels got stuck between the road and parapet. Otherwise, it would have been a watery grave for them. The front wheels were seen hanging above the sea with rear portion of the van on the bridge.
The vehicular traffic on the bridge came to a grinding halt due to this accident. On being alerted by locals, Pamban police rushed to the bridge, pulled the van out of the parapet using a tractor, and restored traffic. Preliminary investigation by police revealed that the driver applied sudden brake in a bid to avoid hitting a bus proceeding ahead of it. Then, the van swerved and rammed into the parapet as the road was wet due to mild shower.