In what is being called the worst road accident in nearly 24 years in the UK, eight Indians died on Saturday on a highway in southern England, when their minibus came into collision with two trucks. Three Wipro employees were among the eight killed.
Two lorry drivers have been charged with causing death by dangerous driving. Three passengers, including a five-year-old girl, are fighting for their lives. The bus was carrying a group of 11 passengers who were being driven to London to meet a coach which was taking them on a last minute holiday to France.
Three of the six men and two women who lost their lives in the pile-up have now been named as Indian nationals who were working for Nottingham firm Capital One.
A spokesman for Wipro, the agency which had arranged the contracts, said:
It is with deep regret and sadness that we confirm the passing away of three of our colleagues, Karthikeyan Ramasubramaniyam Pugalur, Rishi Rajeev Kumar, and Vivek Bhaskaran in a tragic road accident in the UK.
Another employee, Mano Ranjan Panneerselvam, is one of those critically injured in hospital along with the five- year-old girl who is understood to be the daughter of one of the other passengers.
Panneerselvam's wife and mother are said by relatives to be the other women who were hospitalised, whilst three of his family members are understood to be among the dead. Cyriac Joseph, the driver of the minibus who was born in India, was among those who lost their lives in the pile-up.
He had been hired to take the group from Nottingham to London when the crash happened near Newport Pagnell in Buckinghamshire in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Ryszard Masierak, 31, of Evesham, Worcestershire, is accused of eight counts of causing death by dangerous driving, four counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and eight counts of causing death by careless driving while over the prescribed alcohol limit.
David Wagstaff, 53, of Stoke-on-Trent, is charged with eight counts of causing death by dangerous driving and four counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
Masierak was remanded in custody to appear before Milton Keynes Magistrates' Court today whilst Wagstaff was bailed to appear before the same court on 11 September.
(This piece has been edited for length)
(#TalkingStalking: Have you ever been stalked? Share your experience with The Quint and inspire others to shatter the silence surrounding stalking. Send your stories to editor@thequint.com or WhatsApp @ +919999008335)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)