Two people were killed on Saturday when two lorries collided near the 54.9 km post on the Southern Expressway, adding to a grim toll of road fatalities during the Sinhala and Tamil New Year holiday period.
Police said the accident occurred when a lorry travelling towards Kottawa rear-ended a cement-laden lorry. The driver and two passengers in the trailing vehicle were seriously injured and rushed to hospital, where two of them succumbed to their injuries.
The crash is part of a broader cluster of fatal accidents on Avurudu day. Ada Derana reported six people killed in road accidents within the past 24 hours, while the Daily Mirror reported four deaths in two separate incidents on April 12.
The fatalities add to an already alarming toll. Earlier this week, Transport State Minister Nihal Galappatti revealed that 49 people had been killed in road accidents in the week leading up to Avurudu, prompting authorities to deploy expressway CCTV monitoring and additional tri-forces security across the country.
Police had issued multiple warnings ahead of the holiday, including advisories about speeding on expressways and a public appeal to report reckless driving via WhatsApp.
The Southern Expressway, which connects Kottawa to Matara, has been a recurring site of fatal accidents during peak holiday travel periods.
