Five youngsters were killed on Maner-Bihta highway when their sports utility vehicle (SUV) collided head-on with a stationary truck around 3am on Tuesday.

The impact of the accident was so severe that the SUV was crumpled into a mass of iron. Maner police identified the five as Pappu Kumar (20), Rajesh Kumar (22), Ankush Kumar (19), Shravan Kumar (20) and Nitesh Kumar (20), who were returning from Moudehi village in Bihta to Maner after attending a marriage.

Near Mahadeva, the driver lost control of the SUV and hit the truck. People from villages near the highway woke up on hearing the collision and rushed to the spot.

Three youths died on the spot, while two died on way to hospital.

Maner station house officer Ravi Ranjan Singh said: "Prima facie, it appears that the driver lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a turn. Some commuters alerted us."

Police reached the spot immediately and started rescue operations." They could still feel the pulse of Ankush and Nitesh and tried to contact doctors at Maner primary health centre and Danapur sub-divisional hospital but their calls went unanswered. So the cops rushed the injured to Hi-tech Hospital at Saguna More but the two died on way.

Police sources said Ankush's father, Suresh Rai, is a retired army personnel and stayed at Sahalichak in Bihta. They added that the youths were under the influence of alcohol. However, the Maner police denied the fact.

The Maner SHO said: "We have not found any liquor bottle from the SUV. Post-mortem also does not suggest that they were drunk."

The police had to take the service of a towaway truck to remove the remains of the SUV, which got stuck below the undercarriage of the truck from the rear.

The accident triggered a traffic snarl on the highway.