Wedding day turns tragic for two in Goa

A wedding day is one which you tend to look forward to for a long time in your life and when it comes, a gush of great excitement naturally creeps in. All friends and relatives are around you and want to live the great moment with you on the great day at the appointed time. However on Saturday 20 June 2009, it was a day almost forgettable in many respects for a couple who was expected to tie the knot at a Church in Assolna, when their wedding car carrying the bride, her mother , the bridesmaid and a few others collided head on with an oncoming Mumbai bound bus, killing the driver instantly while the bridesmaid was declared dead upon arrival at hospicio hospital Margao.

In the tragic accident, the bride Ermelinda Fernandes escaped with minor injuries whereas the other occupants of the ill fated car which included her mother Elvira (56) neighbour Maria Carvalho (49) and a seven year old flower girl Rachel Coelho sustained grievous head injuries and are currently admitted to Hospicio Hospital Margao.

The tragic incident occurred when the wedding car carrying the above occupants was proceeding from Benaulim to Cuncolim for the wedding nuptial service of Ermelinda and Gilman at Our Lady of Health Church, Cuncolim scheduled at 4 pm when the tragic accident occurred at banda Assolna around 3.30 leaving a mangled car with the driver trapped inside and ejected with the help of locals. While the driver Greg Dias of Assolna died almost instantly he was taken to the hospicio hospital Margao in a 108 ambulance where he was declared dead and the bridesmaid Ms Brenda Rodrigues (24) succumbed to her injuries while on the way to Hospicio Margao and also met with the same fate.

While a pall of gloom was visible around the villages of Benaulim and Cuncolim from where the bride and the groom hail, the tragedy was worst witnessed at the Hospicio hospital Margao where the relatives of the dead and injured were seen wailing in despair at the loss of their dear ones.

Later, the nuptials of the bridal couple took place at the Our Lady of Health Church, Cuncolim in the evening after the bride was discharged.