Two Indian students were killed and two others are undergoing treatment for serious injuries after a car they were travelling struck a tree in southern Ireland.
The two students in their 20s, identified as Cherekuri Suresh Chowdary and Chithoori Bhargav, were pronounced dead at the scene of a fatal road collision in County Carlow on Friday.
As per Superintendent Anthony Farrell from Carlow garda station, the students were travelling in a black Audi A6 when it traversed the road and hit a tree at Graiguenaspiddoge. “The car is believed to have travelled from the direction of the Mount Leinster area, through Fenagh and on to Carlow… All of those in the car are part of our Indian community living together in Carlow town. Our sincere sympathies are extended to the community at this time,” he said.
The two injured passengers – a man and a woman aged in their 20s – were taken to St. Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny. The four friends had been sharing a house in the local area and had recently finished third-level education at South East Technological University (SETU) in Carlow. according to ‘The Irish Times’. One of them is said to have been working in the local pharmaceutical company MSD.
A family friend Venkat Vuppala started a fundraiser for expenses related to funeral costs, with over 25,000 Euros being raised in less than 24 hours. In an online post, he wrote, “We are deeply saddened by the untimely passing of Bhargav Chitturi and Suresh Cherukuri. It is with great sorrow that we announce the tragic car accident on January 31 at Carlow, that claimed the lives of these two Indian students from SETU Carlow.
“In this challenging period, we aim to unite in support of their families to help cover funeral costs and other financial challenges they may encounter,” Vuppala’s post read.
The Indian Embassy in Dublin conveyed its “deepest condolences” on the deaths, adding that it is extending all possible assistance to the two injured persons.