Four persons suffered multiple injuries as the van they were travelling in dashed against the parapet of the ghat road when they were returning from Highwavys near Chinnamanur on Tuesday evening.
Police said Arulmani (37) of Kamarajapuram, Madurai, had organised a day tour for three families to Megamalai and some other places. Apart from the driver, 14 persons, including four children, were travelling in the van.
Preliminary inquiries revealed that in a bid to reach the plains before 5 p.m., van driver Thirunavukarasu drove the vehicle fast. When he was approaching the fourth hairpin bend, he lost control over the vehicle, which hit the parapet.
The occupants of the van told a police officer that if the parapet was not there, they would have fallen into a 300-foot-deep gorge. The injured included Mr. Thirunavukarasu, Kaliammal (75) and Darshini (11).
Chinnamanur Inspector of Police Shanmuga Lakshmi and a police team rushed to the spot and moved the injured persons to hospital.
