Keonjhar, July 22: Three members of a family were killed and a minor boy was critically injured after a Thar SUV rammed into a roadside mango tree near Rajia under Champua police limits in Odisha's Keonjhar district.

According to police, the family from Sijukala village under Parsala Panchayat was rushing Trilochan Apat to the Champua Sub-Divisional Hospital after he complained of severe stomach pain. While on the way, the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle near Rajia, causing it to crash head-on into a large mango tree.

The impact of the collision was so severe that the front portion of the SUV was completely mangled. Bhaskar Apat, Trilochan's brother, died on the spot.

Trilochan, his wife Kainphul, and their son Ranjit were trapped inside the wreckage with critical injuries.

On receiving information, personnel from the Champua Police and Fire Services rushed to the spot and, with the help of local residents, rescued the victims before shifting them to the Champua Hospital.

After receiving first aid, the injured were referred to the Keonjhar District Headquarters Hospital as their condition deteriorated. However, Trilochan and his wife Kainphul succumbed to their injuries while being shifted in an ambulance, taking the death toll to three.

Their son Ranjit, a minor, is undergoing treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Keonjhar District Headquarters Hospital, where his condition remains critical.

The tragic accident has cast a pall of gloom over Sijukala village and the surrounding region, with the family losing three members in a single night. Police have sent the bodies for post-mortem examination and launched an investigation into the cause of the accident.