Three people were electrocuted while rescuing the passengers of a car that hit an electricity pole at Manigere village near Bharatingar in Maddur taluk on Wednesday.
The deceased are Prasanna (45) and Pradeep Kumar (25) of Bidarahosahalli and Devaraju (30) of Madahalli in Malavalli taluk. Prasanna was an employee of the Chamundeshwari Sugar Factory.
Nityananda, Abhishek and Shashikumar were coming from Malavalli in a car towards Bharatinagar when the driver lost balance and hit an electricity pole on the roadside. The car toppled due to the impact and the wires got snapped and fell on the ground.
Hearing the screams of the passengers in the car, Pradeep Kumar and Prasanna, who were coming on a motorbike, rushed to their help. Devaraju, Madhu, Nandeesh and Jeevankumar, who were nearby, lifted the car and rescued one of the passengers.
When they tried to rescue passengers trapped on the other side of the car, the trio failed to notice the snapped power lines. They stepped on the live wires and were electrocuted. Locals immediately alerted the CESC (Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation) officials who disconnected the power supply.
Madhu, Nandeesh and Jeevankumar have suffered burns. The passengers in the car have been admitted to a private hospital for treatment.
The CESC officials have annouced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the kin of the deceased. Transport Minister D C Thammanna handed over the cheques. Superintendent of Police Shivaprakash Devaraju visited the spot. The Bharatinagar police have registered a case.