The post-mortem report of two men, who were found dead in a caravan in Kerala’s Vadakara, revealed that the cause of the death was inhalation of carbon monoxide, a harmful gas. The deceased have been identified as Manoj, a 49-year-old Vaniyambalam native of Malappuram and Joel, a 26-year-old native of Nedumchan in Kannur.
Investigators suspect the toxic gas could have come from the generator of the vehicle. Officials of the Motor Vehicle Department and the police would conduct a vehicle inspection to ascertain the cause.
The men were found dead in a parked caravan on the night of Monday, December 23. The vehicle was parked at the entrance of the road leading to the KTDC restaurant near the national highway at Karimbanapalam. Local residents alerted the police after the vehicle was parked there for two consecutive days. It is believed that the men parked the vehicle and fell asleep inside and inhaled the toxic gas at night.
The caravan is owned by a logistics company in Malappuram, and Manoj is the company's driver. According to reports, Joel, an IT employee, joined the trip as a cleaner after Manoj invited him. The incident occurred while the vehicle was returning from dropping off a wedding group in Kannur. Joel was found in the berth of the vehicle, while Manoj was there at the vehicle's step.
After the post-mortem examination, which was conducted at the Government Medical College Hospital Kozhikode, the mortal remains were handed over to their family members.