Thirteen village administrative officers of Kancheepuram district were killed and several others injured when the van in which they were travelling collided with a train at an unmanned level crossing near Kancheepuram Monday morning.
The officers were on their way to Chennai to attend a rally to thank Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and Local Administration Minister M K Stalin for accepting some of their demands.
Police sources said the VAOs saw a temple past the unmanned level crossing and asked the driver to turn the vehicle towards the area as they wanted to visit the shrine.
The driver took a turn from the main road to the temple and tried to cross the track. He failed to notice the oncoming train, which hit the vehicle, killing 13 of them on the spot.
The injured were immediately rushed to the district headquarters hospital at Kancheepuram, where their condition is stated to be serious.
The exact number of the injured was not immediately known. The van was said to be carrying 23 passengers.
Top civil and police officials have rushed to the spot. This is the same spot where a similar mishap took place two years back.