Sunrise drive turns fatal: Three IIT-B students die in tragic Mumbai-Pune Expressway accident
Victims were part of a group of six, who had spent the night watching a movie in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex before heading to Lonavala for an early-morning excursion
PTC Web Desk: A movie night in Mumbai followed by a sunrise drive to Lonavala ended in tragedy for three IIT Bombay students. The students lost their lives when their car collided with a container truck on the Mumbai–Pune Expressway.
The accident occurred around 8.35 am, about 1.5 km past the Bhatan tunnel, as the students were returning to Mumbai in a rented Volkswagen Polo. The vehicle reportedly struck the rear of the truck while attempting to overtake, causing the car to flip multiple times and reduce to a twisted heap of metal.
Highway traffic police used hydraulic cutters to extract the students from the wreckage and rushed them to MGM Hospital in Kamothe, where they were declared dead. The crash was initially reported by a bus driver passing the scene.
The students were part of a group of six, who had spent the night watching a movie in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex before heading to Lonavala for an early-morning excursion. Another student travelling in a separate car, Hitesh Kumar Meena, filed a complaint leading to an FIR against an unidentified individual.
Authorities are reviewing CCTV footage to trace the container truck involved and are investigating whether overspeeding or driver fatigue contributed to the accident.