Kerala rain: Car using Google Maps to navigate falls in stream, passengers escape
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Kottayam: After using Google Maps to guide them, a party of four visitors from Hyderabad had a near miss on Saturday when their car wound up in a stream.
Early on Saturday morning, the car fell into a stream at Kurupanthara's Kadav Bridge at around three in the morning. The tourists relied on Google Maps to guide them as they made their way from Munnar to Alappuzha.
Sadly, the driver lost his way in the strong rain, causing the car to fall into a stream, the New Indian Express reported.
The car drifted down the canal for about 150 metres before hitting the banks and stopping. Luckily, there were no injuries sustained by the occupants as they were able to get out of the vehicle through the boot space.
The accident was caused by the driver's incapacity to navigate in the extreme weather, according to locals. The driver said that he mistook the canal for a road that was flooded. "I was driving at a speed of 10 km/h. We realized the accident only when the backside of the vehicle started sinking into water. We managed to escape from the car through the window," he said.
Despite the area's high accident rate, the authorities neglected to erect a crash barrier or signboard at the location. By Saturday midday, the automobile was pulled out of the canal with the assistance of locals and the Fire and Rescue force.
