Tourists from Hyderabad drove into a stream in Kerala while using Google maps

A small group of tourists from Hyderabad drove into a flooded stream near Kuruppanthara in this area of south Kerala on Saturday after using Google maps as their navigational help, according to authorities.

The event happened late on Friday night while the four people—a woman included—were traveling to Alappuzha. Because of the severe rains, the stream overflowed onto the road they were traveling on, and the visitors, not knowing the area well, drove straight into the body of water while consulting Google maps, they claimed.

Thanks to the actions of locals and a neighboring police patrolling unit, all four of them were able to escape unharmed, although their vehicle was totally submerged under water. "We're working to extract it," a Kaduthuruthy police station officer stated.


There have been previous reports of similar incidents in Kerala. Two young doctors lost their lives in a car accident in October last year, supposedly as a result of following directions from Google Maps and colliding with a river. The Kerala police released warnings about deploying the technology during the rainy season after the event.

[With PTI inputs]