Siliguri, 22nd December: A moment of joy turned into tragedy early on Monday when a car carrying a group of friends met with a horrific road accident near the Bengal Safari area between 7 and 8 Mile in Siliguri. One woman was killed and five others sustained injuries in the incident.
The deceased has been identified as Sonali Digoria (40), a resident of S.F. Road, Siliguri, who was reportedly a scientist by profession.
According to available information, she had recently returned to Siliguri from Germany after a long time and had gone out with her friends late at night. The group decided to go for a long drive, which eventually proved fatal for Sonali.
Police sources said they received information about the accident at around 3 a.m., following which personnel rushed to the spot. Local eyewitnesses told the police that the vehicle was being driven at a very high speed and the driver lost control. The car first rammed into an electric pole on the roadside and then plunged down from the road, leaving the vehicle completely mangled.
Soon after the accident, local residents, with the help of the police, rescued six people trapped inside the car and rushed them to a private hospital on Sevoke Road. Doctors declared Sonali Digoria dead on arrival. The other injured, identified as Manish Lakhotia, Richa Chaudhary, Nitish Agarwal, Preeti Bansal and Piyush Jain, are undergoing treatment at the hospital. Their condition is stated to be stable. All of them are reportedly residents of Siliguri.
On receiving the information, family members of the injured reached the hospital. The body of the deceased has been sent to North Bengal Medical College and Hospital (NBMCH) for post-mortem examination.
Police have seized the damaged vehicle and are investigating the exact cause of the accident.