Two individuals, navigating towards a hospital with the aid of Google Maps, accidentally drove their car into a flooded river in Kerala’s northern Kasaragod district. Fortunately, they managed a miraculous escape when the vehicle became lodged in a tree.
The footage of Fire Force personnel rescuing them from the flooded Pallanchi River recently gained widespread attention on social media platforms today. They escaped and contacted the Fire Force personnel because their vehicle, swept away by water currents, got stuck in a tree.
The rescued men, including Abdul Rasheed, were using Google Maps to navigate to a hospital in neighboring Karnataka early the other day when they followed a narrow road with their car.
“Using the vehicle’s headlight, we felt that there was some water in front of us. But, we didn’t see that there was a river on both sides and a bridge in the middle. There was also no sidewall for the bridge,” he told a TV channel.
The car started drifting in water currents, then became lodged in a tree on the riverbank. They quickly exited and contacted the Fire Force, who arrived promptly and rescued them using ropes.
“We never thought that we could come back to life. We truly feel that it is a rebirth,” Rasheed added.
Last month, a team of tourists from Hyderabad navigated into a flooded stream close to Kuruppanthara in Kottayam, reportedly relying on Google Maps.
Despite their vehicle being fully submerged, all four individuals safely escaped thanks to the swift response of a nearby police patrol unit and local residents.