On Friday, October 19, 2012, a fiery car crash in Alpharetta seriously injured two men in the vehicle that caught on fire. According to police, an 18-year-old was driving a Ferrari F430 at the time of the car accident.
Akshay Panducherry, 18, and 21-year-old passenger Harshavardhan Patiolla were traveling eastbound on Webb Bridge Road around 4:00 a.m. when the accident occurred. Police indicated that the driver barely missed a bridge abutment and crashed into the nearby woods near Alpharetta High School. Due to the high rate of speed the car was traveling at, the vehicle was sent about 60 yards into the woods before coming to a stop.
The car burst into flames. Police said that the driver and passenger were able to crawl out of the vehicle and tried to climb to the embankment for help. When emergency crews arrived on the scene they had the men airlifted to Grady Memorial Hospital for care.
The men remained in the burn unit for days. The Ferrari driver burned over 80 percent of his body, and the passenger also suffered serious burns. Relatives have identified these occupants as cousins, of north Fulton County.
According to Channel 2, the Ferrari was a birthday gift Akshay Panducherry recently received from his father. However, the car is so damaged and burned that it is now unrecognizable.
George Gordon of the Alpharetta Department of Public Safety reminds drivers that “High rates of speed take people’s lives. We know that a high rate of speed was a contributing factor in this crash.”
Police are still investigating this crash to determine just how fast the F430 was traveling.
As an Alpharetta personal injury lawyer with Shane Smith Law, I wish the two men a full recovery and remind motorists to drive the speed limits in order to avoid a Georgia car crash.