Tirupati: A 16-year-old girl, Sai Vineeta, was found dead while her father was still missing after the car in which they were travelling was swept away in the gushing waters of Kondayavaripalle vagu (stream) in Penumuru mandal of Chittoor district in the late hours on Thursday.
According to police, G. Pratap, a businessman from Vadderapalli, Puthalapattu mandal, along with his wife Shyamala, daughter Vineeta and a relative, Chengappa, were returning home after attending a marriage reception in Kaligiri Konda in the same mandal when the tragedy occurred.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Penumur sub-inspector B. Praveen Kumar said that the Kondayavaripalle vagu was overflowing due to incessant rains for the past two days. “The driver of the car in which Pratap’s family was travelling encountered the overflowing stream while driving back home. When the driver attempted to move forward, the vehicle got stuck on the road for a while and was eventually swept away by the strong current of the water.”
“While the driver of the car managed to break open the windows of the car and all the inmates tried to move to safety, 16-year-old Sai Vineeta who was on the top of the car accidentally slipped into the stream. Pratap, who saw his daughter being swept away, jumped into the waters to rescue her. Unfortunately, both father and daughter were swept away in the gushing waters,” the SI added.
Villagers, who had rushed to the spot after hearing the cries for help, rescued Shyamala, Chengapa, and driver Kiran. Penumuru police and rescue teams reached the stream on Friday early morning and launched a rescue operation. The rescue teams also tried to spot the victims using drone cameras but were not successful. However, they managed to retrieve Vineeta’s body.
“After five hours, the rescue teams retrieved Vineeta’s body but her father is still missing. The rescue operation is continuing and additional forces and expert divers were roped in to trace Pratap,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, Chittoor MLA Arani Srinivasulu and senior officials of the district administration reached the spot on Friday morning. They got down into the stream in boats and supervised the rescue operation.
