Tragedy at Ennore: Two Engineering Students Drown in Sea While on Beach Outing
Chennai, July 25, 2026: A day of leisure turned into tragedy for two college students who drowned while swimming off Bharathiyar Beach in Ennore on Saturday morning.
The deceased have been identified as Keerthika (19), a third-year B.Tech Information Technology student from Puducherry, and Akash (20), a second-year B.E. Electrical and Electronics Engineering student from Avadi, according to the Ennore police.
The students were part of a group of five friends from a private engineering college in Soorapattu, Tiruvallur district. They had gone to the beach to swim and shoot videos for social media. The other members of the group—Pavithra (18), Shivani (19), and Tharun (21)—were unharmed.
While in the water, Akash and Keerthika were swept away by strong currents. Local fishermen managed to rescue Keerthika and rushed her to a nearby hospital, where she was declared dead on arrival.
Personnel from the Fire and Rescue Services, assisted by fishermen, launched a search for Akash. His body was recovered approximately three hours later and handed over to the police.
The bodies have been sent to Government Stanley Medical College Hospital for post-mortem examination. The Ennore police have registered a case and are investigating the circumstances leading to the drowning.
