Three people were killed and one was seriously injured when the car they were travelling in hit the rear of a truck on Yamuna Expressway near here on early hours of Saturday, police said. The victims were on their way to Lucknow from Delhi when the accident took place near Nagla Vishuna village under Saurikh police station area around 2 am, a police official said.

Gas cutters had to be used to extricate the bodies out of the car which had been virtually turned into a mangled heap of iron sheets, Saurikh police station’s SHO Vijay Bahadur Verma said.

Those killed were identified as Manish (40), Ajit Singh (32) and Pankaj Singh(30), he said, adding that the fourth occupant of the car has been admitted to PGI Safai with grievous injuries.