Expressway tunnel car crash kills four

MUMBAI: Four people died and two others suffered serious injuries when their car crashed into the Bhatan tunnel on the Mumbai-Pune expressway around 1.30 pm on Friday.

Madan Pawar (52), who was at the wheel, and three passengers — Shantilal Kamble (53), Ramsukh Lal (50) and Prashant Nalawade (30) — died on the spot. Kamble’s son Amit (28) and Sandeep Pawar (30) are battling for their lives at MGM (Navi Mumbai) and Ashtavinayak (Panvel) hospitals.

While the Kambles were the first ones to get into the car, an Ambassador owned by Pawar, the others were picked up en route to Pune.

Police have ruled out drunk driving. Preliminary investigations indicated that over-speeding and rash and negligent driving.

“When the car reached Bhatan tunnel, the driver lost control and crashed into the left wall of the tunnel,” said  police sub-inspector Vijay Pawar. A motorist alerted the police to the accident.