5 hospitalised as van crashes into three-wheeler and building

Five people were admitted to the Puttalam Base Hospital following an incident on Wednesday where a van veered off the road, struck a three-wheeler, and crashed into a building in the Thilladiya area of Puttalam.

The van was carrying a group returning to Negombo after a pilgrimage to Anuradhapura and was driven by a woman at the time of the incident.

According to Puttalam Headquarters Police, a car suddenly crossed the road in front of the van, prompting the female driver to swerve to avoid a collision.

The van then lost control, hit an oncoming three-wheeler from Palaviya, and crashed through the glass front of a roadside building on the opposite side of the road.

Police noted that ten lives were narrowly saved across the entire incident.

Six passengers inside the van escaped unhurt, while employees inside the building also survived.

A female employee was sorting files at a desk just a few feet away from where the van breached the wall; although the glass partition shattered completely, she avoided any major injury.

The casualties hospitalised following the crash include three individuals who were travelling in the three-wheeler and two passengers from the van.

Puttalam Police are conducting further investigations.