Gujarat: Survivors recall moment of bridge collapse
Sonalben Padhiyar was the only survivor among her family members after the car she was travelling in fell into the river.Recounting the terrifying moments, Ms Padhiyar told the Indian Express newspaper that she was sitting in the back when the car fell into the river headfirst.A video of her, visibly distressed and shouting for someone to save her son, has since gone viral. She later told ANI that she screamed for a long time before help arrived. She lost six family members.Dilipsinh Padhiyar, another survivor (not related to Ms Padhiyar), was returning home from a night shift on his two-wheeler when the accident took place. "Traffic was moving as usual," he told the Indian Express.He said he had barely crossed 100m on the bridge when he felt a vibration before the structure gave way."I found myself falling into the river," he said.Mr Padhiyar suffered injuries but managed to hold on to a metal rod and stay afloat until local fishermen arrived to help.Eyewitnesses said the collapse felt like an earthquake, shaking the ground and sending multiple vehicles crashing into the river.Jairaj Singh, one of the locals who rushed to the scene, told BBC Gujarati he was alerted by a phone call from a friend."As soon as I heard, I rushed over," he said. "We began pulling out vehicles with ropes. People from the area came together to help."
The collapse has set off a political row, with locals saying they had often complained about its poor condition.Ravibhai, who lives in the area, told BBC Gujarati that the bridge would often shake when heavy vehicles drove on it.Abhesinh Parmar, a local council chief from a village near the bridge, said it was in a "dilapidated" condition and "had potholes everywhere"."Rods could be seen sticking out of the structure. We complained many times, but no action was taken," he alleged.Rushikesh Patel, a spokesperson for the Gujarat government, denied this, saying that the bridge was inspected and repaired at regular intervals."Recently, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had approved dismantling the existing bridge and constructing a new one. We were set to issue a tender soon," he said.Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is from Gujarat, has expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and announced compensation.Wednesday's collapse is among a series of deadly accidents linked to ageing and poorly maintained public infrastructure in India. In 2022, around 135 people were killed when a 137-year-old suspension bridge in Gujarat's Morbi town collapsed into a river. The bridge, a popular tourist attraction, had reopened for visitors just days earlier following repairs.Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Air India report reveals fuel error three seconds after take-off
A preliminary report into the Air India crash near Ahmedabad, which killed 260 people, revealed that three seconds after take-off, the plane's engine fuel cutoff switches almost simultaneously flipped to cutoff. This action starved the Boeing 787 Dreamliner's engines of fuel, causing it to immediately lose thrust and descend, though both switches were found in the run position at the crash site. The report noted a pilot asking another why he cut the fuel, with the other denying it, but did not identify which pilot made which remarks or explain how the switches moved. Aviation safety experts are questioning whether the switches moved independently or were manipulated by the pilots, as such a cutoff is typically reserved for specific emergencies, not indicated in this case. India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is leading the probe, with black boxes recovered, but has not yet issued any recommended actions for the aircraft or engine manufacturers.
Sky News
an hour ago
- Sky News
Everything you need to know about Air India Flight 171 - as report into crash released
An Air India flight which was en route to London Gatwick crashed in India. At least 242 people were on board the flight when it crashed shortly after take-off in the northwestern Indian city of Ahmedabad - 241 of those died. Local police initially said there appeared to be no survivors, but it later emerged that at least one person - a UK national - survived the disaster. Here is everything you need to know. Where did the plane crash? Air India Flight 171 took off from Ahmedabad Airport at 1.38pm local time on Thursday 12 June. According to flight-tracking website Flightradar, the aircraft reached a height of 625ft before crashing. The last signal from the plane was received less than a minute after take-off. CCTV footage showed the plane struggling to gain altitude, and instead beginning to descend towards buildings, with its wheels still out and its nose raised. 0:56 The aircraft crashed into a residential area of the city called Meghaninagar, Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, the director general of the directorate of civil aviation, told the Associated Press. It came down just outside the airport, hitting the residential quarters of BJ Medical College where students were staying. A total of 241 passengers and 19 others on the ground were killed. 0:31 The tail of the plane was pictured protruding from the side of a building while the wings were ripped completely from the main body of the aircraft. Images from the scene showed people being carried in stretchers and taken away in ambulances. Who was on board? Air India said the 242 passengers and crew included 53 British nationals, 169 Indian nationals, seven Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian. Three Britons, all members of the same family, were confirmed to be among those killed. In a Facebook statement, Gloucester Muslim Community said Akeel Nanabawa, his wife Hannaa and their four-year-old daughter Sara died in the crash. British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh is believed to be the only survivor. His brother, Nayan, told Sky News their father was on the phone to him while the plane was still on the runway - before he video called again two minutes later to say the plane had crashed and: "I don't know how I'm alive." His other brother, who was also on the flight and seated in a different row on the plane, died in the crash. 2:21 Speaking from his hospital bed, Mr Ramesh said he "still can't believe" he survived. He said he thought he "was also going to die" but he then "opened [his] eyes". "I pulled out the belt from under my seat and tried to escape. Then I managed to do it," he told DD India. 0:45 Mr Ramesh told the Hindustan Times newspaper he had lived in London for 20 years. The flight had been due to land at London Gatwick at 6.25pm UK time. 0:34 What caused the crash? According to a preliminary investigation into the crash, fuel to the engines of the aircraft appeared to cut off shortly after take-off. A 15-page report by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), released at the beginning of July, said that switches in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner's cockpit that controlled fuel moved to a "CUTOFF" position. There was then confusion in the cockpit. In a voice recording of the flight's captain first officer, one is heard asking the other why he "cut off". The other pilot responds that he did not do so. Flipping to "CUTOFF" almost immediately cuts the engines, and is most often used to turn the engines off once a plane has arrived at its airport gate and in certain emergency situations, such as an engine fire - though both switches together are rarely used simultaneously. The report does not indicate there was any emergency requiring an engine cutoff. It also does not give a conclusion as to how the switches moved. Tim Atkinson, a pilot and aviation consultant, told Sky News' Gillian Joseph"there are very few situations or circumstances which would explain this". He explained: "One would be an utterly extraordinary human error, an unintentional act, and the other - I'm very sorry to say - would be an intentional act. And that's not a suggestion or allegation, it's simply an analysis of the small amount of information that we have at hand at this moment." How did the UK respond? Sir Keir Starmer said at the time the scenes emerging from the site of the crash in Ahmedabad were "devastating". The prime minister said he was being kept updated as the situation develops. Buckingham Palace said King Charles was also being briefed on the crash. In a statement, the King said: "My wife and I have been desperately shocked by the terrible events in Ahmedabad this morning. "Our special prayers and deepest possible sympathy are with the families and friends of all those affected by this appallingly tragic incident across so many nations, as they await news of their loved ones." The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch also deployed four investigators to help the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau in India with its investigation into the crash. What about India? Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the plane crash was "heartbreaking beyond words". "The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us," he said at the time. "In this sad hour, my thoughts are with everyone affected by it." The country's civil aviation minister added he was "shocked and devastated". While the boss of Air India, Natarajan Chandrasekaran, said: "Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of all those affected by this devastating event." Tata Group, the parent company of Air India, said it would provide 10 million rupees (around £86,000) to the families of those who were killed in the crash. What we know about Air India Air India, the country's flagship carrier, is a private company, majority owned by the Indian conglomerate Tata Group and minority owned by Singapore Airlines. Since October, Air India Group has been 25.1% owned by Singapore Airlines, with the remaining owned privately by Tata. At that time, four Tata-owned airlines merged with another airline, Vistara. The airline operates more than 5,600 weekly flights and connects more than 90 domestic and international destinations with a fleet of 208 aircraft. It flies more than 120,000 passengers every day and offers connectivity to over 800 destinations through more than 75 partners. It was founded in 1932 and was owned by the Indian government from 1953 to 2022. Because Air India is private, it doesn't publish the kinds of financial and operational information that public airlines, like Ryanair or Air France-KLM, do. It also means we can't easily track its share price value, which is not publicly traded or visible. Similarly, the part of Tata that owns Air India isn't publicly listed, so we don't have a stock price representation of how investors are digesting this information. Previous plane crashes in India Air India, which started operations in 1932, and its subsidiary Air India Express have suffered several fatal crashes. According to Aviation Safety Network (ASN) the most recent fatal crash was in August 2020, when Boeing 737-800 (Air India Express) overshot the runway in Karipur, India, rolled down an embankment and broke up, killing 21 people. Non-fatal incidents have happened as recently as this year. In January, an Airbus A320-251N suffered an engine shutdown after departing Bangalore and landed safely at the same location, according to The Times of India. Boeing shares fell nearly 8% in premarket US trading on Thursday, after the crash in Ahmedabad.
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Who are the victims of the Air India plane crash?
All but one of those on board an Air India flight bound for London Gatwick that crashed shortly after take-off from the western Indian city of Ahmedabad on 12 June were 242 passengers and crew on the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, including 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian, the airline people living in a residential neighbourhood near the airport where the jet came down were also killed, taking the number of confirmed casualties to at least 270. They included a number of medical students staying in the passenger, British national Vishwashkumar Ramesh, survived the crash and was treated in hospital for are still emerging, but these are some of the people so far confirmed by the BBC to have died. Akash Patni Akash, 15, was the younger of two sons of tuk-tuk driver Suresh Patni. Akash was at the tea stall the family runs near the gate to a student hostel not far from the airport when the plane came crashing down. Suresh told reporters his wife tried to save their son, and had been burnt but she survived. Hardik Avaiya and Vibhooti Patel A couple who went to India to celebrate their engagement have been named among the Avaiya and his fiancee Vibhooti Patel were among those being remembered at a service in Leicester on Patel, who worked with Mr Avaiya, said: "We were on our way to pick him up when I got a call to say a plane to Gatwick had crashed in Ahmedabad."So we immediately checked the ticket and matched the flight number and we just cried." Dhir and Heer Baxi Sisters Dhir and Heer Baxi, both in their early 20s, were returning home to London on the flight, having visited India to surprise their grandmother for her cousin Ishan Baxi, who lives in Ahmedabad, told PA news agency the siblings had an "amazing aura" and had ambitions to "roam around the world".Heer worked as a product manager and "loved statistics and finance", while Dhir was a fashion designer who had studied at Parsons Paris art and design school, Mr Baxi said. Kalyani and Gaurav Brahmbhatt Husband and wife Kalyani and Gaurav Brahmbhatt were onboard the Air India flight, their close friend Trupti Telrandhe told the said Gaurav and her husband Amul worked together for five years in a company in Burton-upon-Trent in the UK."This was the time we all met together and started our family journey in 2009," she said."They were very close friends," the pharmacist from Derby said. "They never used to tell us that they're going to visit us. It was always a surprise visit."She described them as "extremely hard-working and very friendly" adding they were "fun-loving" and "always motivated us to have big dreams". Saineeta Chakravarti Saineeta Chakravarti, 34, a crew member on the ill-fated flight, had been passionate about her job, relatives said. She'd been fond of airplanes since she was a child. "She took inspiration from me and passed it along to her nieces, and made me quite proud," said her aunt, who had also been a flight attendant. The Girish family A family of four, from north-west London, have also been Shantilal and her husband Girish Lagli, from Wembley, were on board the London-bound flight with their young children Aadiv and Taksvi is believed the family were sitting in row 30 of the aircraft with Taksvi sitting on an adult's lap. Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek, a married British couple, ran a spiritual wellness centre in posted on Instagram earlier on Thursday saying they were about to board the flight from Ahmedabad the video, they were seen laughing and joking with each other about their trip to India. The Joshi family A consultant radiologist from Derby, his wife and three young children have been named among the Joshi, who worked at the Royal Derby Hospital since 2021, is believed to have been travelling back from India, where his wife Komi Vyas and their three children - five-year-old twin boys Nakul and Pradyut and eight-year-old daughter Miraya, eight - were based.A colleague who worked closely with Dr Joshi described him as a "wonderful man" and said his passing had "left a profound void"."Prateek was full of joy," Dr Rajeev Singh, clinical director for imaging at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton (UHDB), said. "He approached everything with a smile, radiated positivity and had a great sense of humour."He touched the lives of so many people, both through his clinical work and as a colleague and friend to many."Dr Singh added it was "hard to accept" that a man with such a passion for life and his beautiful young family had been taken in this Derby Hindu Temple paid tribute to the family on its Facebook page saying: "Dr Joshi [and his family] were devotees of our Mandir and supported us through their sincere service and dedication."We pray to Lord Shiva to grant eternal peace to the departed souls and to give strength to the bereaved family to bear this immense loss."Neil Ryan, who lived next door to them for two years, also described them as "the nicest family". First Officer Clive Kundar First Officer Clive Kundar, the co-pilot of the crashed flight, lived with his family in Mumbai. He had logged approximately 1,100 hours of flight time. Mohammed Adnan Master Mohammed Adnan Master had a wife and 11-month-old baby, according to the mosque where he Cann Hall Deen & Education Trust, east London, posted on social media: "Our sincerest condolences are extended to his wife and 11-month-old baby." Raxa Modha and her two-year-old grandson, Rudra Modha A woman and her grandson from Wellingborough, Northamptonshire were also on board the Modha, and her two-year-old grandson, Rudra, were believed to have been flying back to England for a memorial service for Ms Modha's late husband, Kishor, who died in April from Mishra, the mayor of Wellingborough, said: "I extend my deepest condolences to their families, friends and all those affected by this heartbreaking event."May their memories be a blessing, and may we come together to support one another in this time of grief." Panna Nagar Former nursery school headteacher and Ofsted inspector Panna Nagar also died in the crash, her family confirmed.A social media post signed from her four grandchildren said: "Her work in education and numerous charities brought her around the world, her legacy is undoubtedly immense and she touched so many lives with her passion."She created an international community through her care for people and a desire to bring education to everyone."They added: "Her impact will be remembered indefinitely. She poured an endless amount of love, passion and care into everything that she did."Nani was the heart of the family, she held us together with her warmth and wisdom. Her house was never quiet, it was always filled with laughter, good food and Maya's barks!"As her grandchildren she was everything to us, she taught us that our ambitions and passions are so important, that the time we have together is sacred and precious."She shaped our lives in more ways than we can count and she will be sorely missed."Ms Nagar was head of Northfleet Nursery School in Gravesend, Kent, for 15 years from school said she was "more than just an educator"."She was a guiding light, an inspiration and a champion for every child and staff member lucky enough to walk through her doors," it said. Renjitha Gopakumaran Nair Renjitha Gopakumaran Nair was a nurse who had just resigned from her job at Portsmouth's Queen Alexandra Hospital. She was finalising a permanent move back home to India to be with her two children and elderly mother, and had travelled out there to submit documents for a nursing post in Kerala. Her family said she had even set a date for a housewarming party at her newly-built home in the city. Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust described her as a "much-loved and valued member" of their nursing team and said her loss has come as a had a 12-year-old daughter and a 15-year-old son. The Nanabawa family Three of the British nationals thought to have died in the incident were a family who lived in Nanabawa, his wife Hannaa Vorajee and their four-year-old daughter Sara Nanabawa were all on board the flight.A statement on behalf of their family said they were "heartbroken" and "devastated", adding that "we are still coming to terms with the enormity of what has happened"."They were widely loved and deeply respected," Imam Abdullah said. "His [Akeel's] quiet generosity, her [Hannaa's] warmth and kindness, and their daughter's [Sara's] bright, joyful spirit made a lasting impact on everyone who knew them."This tragedy has shaken our entire community. In a place where people know and care for one another, the pain is being shared by many."Gloucester Muslim Society said it passed on its "most sincere and deepest condolences"."No words can truly ease the pain of such a profound loss, but we pray that the family may find solace in the tremendous outpouring of compassion and solidarity from communities across the world."May their cherished memories provide comfort, and may they rest in eternal peace." What could have caused Air India plane to crash in 30 seconds?Verified video shows Air India plane descending moments before impactWhat we know so far about flight AI171 Pramukh Nanda and family Five days after celebrating his 48th birthday, car dealer Pramukh Nanda was on the way to the UK to attend his elder son Pratham's graduation ceremony. He was travelling with his wife Neha and younger son Pravesh. Shailesh and Nehal Parmar British nationals Shailesh Parmar, 61, and Nehal Parmar, 52, were visiting Jamnagar in Gujarat to spend time with their parents. The couple had lost their 26-year-old son, Heet, to a plane crash three years ago."Heet was a trained pilot. In 2022, he was flying an airplane in Spain when it crashed and Heet died in the crash," Nehal's sister Vaishali Oza told the Ahmedabad Mirror. Ashok and Shobhana Patel Ashok Patel, a financial adviser, and Shobhana Patel, a retired microbiologist, were living in Orpington, Kent. The British couple were on the plane returning home to their two sons, Miten and Hemit, their daughter-in-law Shivani, as well as two grandchildren, Amyra and the eldest son, told the BBC the couple had spoken to him and Amyra whilst waiting for their flight to depart. They said they were excited that they would soon see their grandchildren were both full of life and never gave up when times were tough, Miten said. "We were so fortunate and so proud to have been given them as our parents, we will miss them every day and make sure the kids remember the good times with Baa and Dada [grandma and granddad]," he added. Dirdh Patel Dirdh Patel, 23, a keen cricketer who studied at the University of Huddersfield, was an "exceptional individual" who had achieved the highest grade on his course, his former tutor George Bargiannis, a reader in artificial intelligence at the university's school of computing and engineering, said Mr Patel was "someone I came to know not just for his academic abilities, but for his warmth, passion, and enthusiasm". Manju Mahesh Patel Manju Mahesh Patel, 79, had been staying in Ahmedabad while doing charity work at a temple, her son Chirag told Sky was sitting in seat 12D - just one row behind the one surviving passenger, her son said his mother was a strong woman who "really loved her family".He said she had packed her suitcase with lollipops and special crisps to give to her grandchildren when she returned to London. Sahil Patel Sahil Salim Ibrahim Patel, who came from a small village in Gujarat state, was on his first international flight, heading to London to take up a dream work months earlier he'd won a two-year UK work visa, under the British government's India Young Professionals Scheme, which could have changed his family's lives, Al-Jazeera reported. Maithili Patil Maithili Patil, one of the cabin crew members on flight AI171, was the eldest of three siblings. The 23-year-old was the first girl from her village to become a flight said her whole village was proud of her flying the world. Arjun Patoliya Arjun Patoliya, 37, had gone to India to scatter his wife Bharti's ashes, her final wish after she died of cancer last month. The furniture designer from north London leaves behind two young daughters, aged four and eight. Ajay Kumar Ramesh Ajay Kumar Ramesh was on the flight, sitting alongside his brother, the British surviving passenger Vishwashkumar cousin, Ajay Valgi, told the BBC that Vishwashkumar Ramesh had called his family to say he was "fine", but he did not know the whereabouts of his brother. Vijay Rupani Vijay Rupani, former chief minister of India's Gujarat state, was killed in the crash, the country's civil aviation minister told served as the chief minister of the western Indian state from was a member of the governing BJP party. Captain Sumeet Sabharwal Captain Sabharwal was a veteran Air India pilot with nearly three decades of experience. With more than 8,200 hours of flying experience, he was the most senior crew member on the flight. He was a Line Training Captain (LTC), a role entrusted to only the most seasoned pilots responsible for mentoring younger crew 60-year-old was just months away from retirement and had planned to spend more time with his father, a former civil aviation official with whom he lived, The Indian Express newspaper reported."He would take his father on evening walks when he was home, since the news of the air crash everyone is in shock," a guard at the building where the pilot live told the BBC. Ketan Shah Father-of-two Ketan Shah was among the passengers on the 43-year-old had lived in Dorset for more than a decade, and is survived by his wife Megha, a teenage son and ran a village community store in Shipton Bellinger, Hampshire, and was visiting India to see his sick father. His close friend of more than 15 years Jigneshkumar Patel said he was "still trying to process this heart-breaking news" and he was "like a brother" to said a tribute to him was being arranged in Southampton."Before the plane took off he called his wife to tell her he was on the flight and that's the last conversation she had with him," Mr Patel said. Lamnunthem Singson Singson was a member of the cabin crew on board Air India flight 171, her family the Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad, her cousin, T Thanglingo Haokip, told the BBC he was trying to get information about her but was added that Singson had a mother and brother who were "wholly dependent on her" as she "was the only breadwinner" in her family. Swapnil Soni, his wife Yoga and sister-in-law Alpa Swapnil Soni, 45, was on the plane with his wife Yoga and sister-in-law Alpa. They were headed to London to meet Alpa's husband, Nishith, who was about to finish a road trip by car from Ahmedabad to London after travelling through 22 and Alpa had originally booked tickets on different dates but later switched to 12 June, ending up on the ill-fated flight. The Syed family Also on the plane were Javed Syed and his wife Mariam, from west London. They were onboard with their two young children Zayn and Amani, and were returning from a holiday in Syed worked at Harrods and Mr Syed worked at a west London hotel. Adam and Hasina Taju, and their son-in-law Altafhusen Patel Adam Taju, 72, and his wife Hasina, 70, were flying back from Ahmedabad with their 51-year-old son-in-law, Altafhusen Patel. All three lived in couple's granddaughter, Ammaarah Taju, spoke of her shock and disbelief at her parents home in said her father, Altaf Taju, had driven to London to be with his sister as they received updates about the crash from Air India and government officials. Manisha Thapa Manisha Thapa, 27, was among the cabin crew members on board. Her friends and batchmates remember Thapa as a "promising girl" who had "high ambition in life".
