Overview
- The crash occurred in the early hours of Thursday when a car carrying seven friends returning from a wedding veered off a village road near Indipur/Chhatia and plunged into a roadside pond.
- Two occupants escaped by jumping out and alerted others, while five passengers were trapped and later found dead after the vehicle was recovered from the water.
- Authorities identified the deceased as Sri Ram Sahu (25), Abinash Sahu (28), Rakesh Kumar Sahu (25), Chandrakanta Swain (27) and Abhijit Sahu (25); their bodies were sent to Dhenkanal District Headquarters Hospital for post-mortem.
- Two survivors were admitted for treatment at the district hospital, and Dhenkanal Sadar police have registered a case and begun an investigation into the circumstances of the mishap.
- Local villagers and members of the wedding party took part in the initial rescue; police suspect the trapped occupants died of asphyxia and the crash highlights ongoing road-safety risks in the region.