Indian family met with car crash around 5 miles from West Virginia destination: Tracing their journey

The site of the accident was barely 5 miles from the Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold. The site was located near West Virginia's border with Pennsylvania.

Published on: Aug 3, 2025, 14:21:08 IST

By Majid Alam

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Four Indian-origin family members, who went missing during their road trip in New York, have been found dead in a tragic car accident, the Marshal County Sheriff's office said in a statement on Sunday.

Four Indian-origin family members who went missing during a road trip have been found dead in a tragic car crash. (Facebook/Sibu Nair)

Asha Divan (85), Kishore Divan (89), Shailesh Divan (86), and Gita Divan (84) were travelling from Buffalo in New York to Prabhupada's Palace of Gold in West Virginia, when they went missing since July 29.

The US authorities said that the family died in a car crash near a steep embankment along Big Wheeling Creek Road, which was barely five miles from their destination.

Also Read: Indian-origin family vanishes on US road trip, CCTV shows last seen at Pennsylvania Burger King

The four family members were on a road trip in a 2009 Toyota Camry travelling to Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold, a spiritual retreat in Moundsville, West Virginia.

They were last seen on July 29 at a Burger King outlet on Peach Street in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Tracing their journey

The four elderly family members started their journey in a light green Toyota Camry bearing a New York license plate (EKW2611) from Buffalo in New York. They had planned to visit the Palace of Gold on McCreary's Ridge Road in Marshall County in West Virginia.

After starting from New York, the family visited a temple in Pittsburgh. The group then headed to Moundsville in West Virginia, where they were supposed to check into Palace Lodge Hotel, before visiting the temple. However, the authorities said that the four never checked into their pre-booked accommodation.

The family was spotted at a Burger King on Peach Street in Erie, Pennsylvania. The CCTV footage showed two members of the family entering the fast-food restaurant, marking the last confirmed sighting of the group. Their credit card transaction also confirmed their last location.

Also Read: Indian family, on way to US temple, dies in tragic car crash

The US authorities said that their vehicle was last detected on a Pennsylvania State Trooper's License Plate Reader while travelling south on I-79 at around 2:45 pm on July 29. The location was around 60 kilometres from their destination.

Tragic death

The US authorities on Sunday confirmed that the four individuals were found dead in a vehicle crash.

Their vehicle was located at around 9:30 pm (local time) on Saturday off a steep embankment along Big Wheeling Creek Road.

The site of the accident was barely five miles from their destination, Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold, according to Google Maps navigation. The spiritual retreat in Moundsville was located at the edge of West Virginia, near the border with Pennsylvania. The final half-hour stretch to the temple was known to be a difficult terrain.

"The victims have been identified as Dr. Kishore Divan, Mrs. Asha Divan, Mr. Shailesh Divan, and Mrs. Gita Divan. Their vehicle was located on Saturday, August 2, at approximately 9:30 PM, off a steep embankment along Big Wheeling Creek Road. First responders were on the scene for more than five hours," Marshal County Sheriff Mike Dougherty said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Majid Alam
Majid Alam is a Chief Content Producer working at Hindustan Times, based in New Delhi. He currently heads shifts at online desk and manages homepage apart from writing, editing and curating articles. With over six years of experience in journalism, Majid has navigated national, politics and international news. His work primarily focuses on the politics of the Hindi heartland, government policies, and South Asia. He also writes on US and Europe’s policies vis-à-vis India. Before joining Hindustan Times, Majid worked at ABP LIVE as the Chief Copy Editor and at News18, where he managed the World and Explainers sections. His articles have featured in Dialogue Earth, The Quint, BMJ, The Diplomat, and Outlook India. Majid has a keen interest in the use of data for storytelling. Majid holds a Masters in Convergent Journalism from Jamia Millia Islamia. He was awarded the Erasmus+ scholarship to study International Affairs at Sciences Po, Paris in 2020. He is also part of the OCEANS Network, an alumni network of Erasmus+ exchange scholars. He is currently serving as the National Representative (India) at the OCEANS Network. Apart from journalism, Majid has a flair for academic writing and loves to teach. He has published a book chapter: 'Bombay Cinema and Postmodernism' in the book: 'Handbook of Research on Social and Cultural Dynamics in Indian Cinema.' He was also part of the OCEANS Network delegation to Hanoi National University of Education in Vietnam in 2025. He has also given guest lecture in digital journalism at AJK MCRC, Jamia Millia Islamia.Read More

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