Cops inspect mangled remains of the vehicle near Markona in Balasore district. Telegraph picture

Balasore, Oct. 12: Six passengers, including a couple, were killed and four others injured after their vehicle rammed into a truck on NH-5 near Markona, around 45km from here, in the early hours today.

While five of the passengers were found dead inside the vehicle, one of the critically injured, Sipu Mahapatra, 26, succumbed to injuries at Bhadrak district headquarters hospital.

The deceased were identified as Niranjan Panda, 58, and his wife Subarna Panda, 50, Hrushikesh Panda, 19, Manoranjan Behera, 25, and Yaswant Tandi, 20, all employees of the horticulture department of Udla, police sources said. All of them belonged to Kaptipada and Udala area of Mayurbhanj district and were going to Puri.

“ We have extricated the injured and bodies of the deceased by using crow bars and gas cutters from the badly mangled vehicle,” said inspector in-charge of Simulia police station Sukadev Tudu.

The police said Sandip Mahapatra, 19, and Subrat Panda, driver of the vehicle, were shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack.

Two others injured Alekh Behera and Lipu Mahapatra were undergoing treatment at the Bhadrak district headquarters hospital.

The bodies were sent to Soro community health centre for autopsy.

“We are yet to confirm how the mishap took place but a case has been registered and investigation is on,” said sub-divisional police officer Kailash Chandra Parida.

Road mishaps are frequent on this stretch of NH-5. Fourteen persons have been killed in two separate accidents within a span of three days on the stretch.