Karthikeyan, 34, went to the Marina Seaside in Chennai together with his household to observe an aerobatic show by an Indian Air Power plane as a part of the celebrations of the 92nd Indian Air Power Day on October 6.
Karthikeyan, a resident of Thiruvotriyur, labored as an administrator in a personal logistics firm. He and his household had been amongst tens of millions of people that got here to see the air present and set the Limca document books for the most important public gathering to observe the occasion.
Nevertheless, tragedy struck because the venue couldn’t accommodate the swelling crowds and spectators struggled with overcrowding, site visitors jams and an absence of primary services in sweltering warmth. No less than 5 folks died and lots of hospitalized Attributable to warmth associated points.
Karthikeyan was one of many victims.
His spouse, Sivaranjani, stated chaos ensued when folks began dashing towards the exits on the finish of the air present. Karthikeyan left his spouse and two-year-old son on the bus cease and parked his bike a kilometer away.
He struggled for almost a kilometer to succeed in Napier Bridge, which connects Fort St. George to Marina Seaside. However he by no means got here again.
“He went to get the bike. I couldn’t contact him because the cellphone was damaged. I waited for 2 hours. I saved calling and all of the sudden, round 3.15 pm, somebody answered the cellphone and advised me that he (Karthikeyan) had fainted and requested I reached the spot,” Sivaranjani advised India At the moment TV.
“It took me 10 minutes to get to the scene. I noticed him mendacity on the ground unresponsive. We put him in an ambulance and took him to the hospital, the place he was pronounced lifeless. For 2 hours I did not know what occurred to him .Sivaranjani requested.
Sivaranjani’s ordeal didn’t finish there. As she waited in entrance of the Rajiv Gandhi Authorities Hospital to gather her husband’s physique, she was advised that the “explanation for loss of life” couldn’t be decided.
Sivaranjani advised India At the moment TV that she refused to obtain the physique till the reason for loss of life was decided. Nevertheless, authorities obtained the signature of certainly one of her distant cousins and loaded Katikyan’s physique into an ambulance.
“I do not know what is going on on right here. Neither I nor Kartikeyan’s mom signed these paperwork,” a sobbing Sivaranjani advised India At the moment TV as she rushed right into a automotive. Chasing the husband’s physique within the ambulance.
What’s mistaken with the Chennai Air Present?
Marina Seaside is the second largest shoreline on the planet and has acquired enormous crowds up to now. Political stalwarts similar to CN Annadurai, MG Ramachandran, Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi had been laid to relaxation beside the waves as tens of millions gathered to bid them farewell.
Not too long ago, Marina Seaside witnessed one of many largest rallies throughout the Jallikattu protests, with an estimated 1 million cellular crowds gathering for over every week.
However issues have modified quite a bit since then, with a number of exits being artificially lined as a result of development of metro initiatives. Chain eating places on the seashore, which had been feeding the crowds a gentle stream of meals and water, had been closed throughout the air present.
At 8 a.m. on Sunday, October 6, tens of millions of individuals, unaware of the adjustments, gathered to observe the spectacle. 6 hours of life.
After the present, folks determined to stroll shortly in direction of the highway. Regardless of the deployment of seven,500 police, nobody was seen on the Corniche as they had been busy clearing the way in which for the VIPs sitting below white tents.
Corniche begins to swell and develop into clogged The general public can’t transfer in both path. A number of folks started to break down and had been pressured to take a seat on the roadside whereas involved members of the family fanned them. Many individuals tried to leap over the fences of Presidency Faculty and different buildings simply to seek out some shade and respiratory area below the timber.
A metropolis official stated consuming water was obtainable on the website. Nevertheless, the official stated it was arrange on the service lane and the group had shifted to the principle highway the place it was presupposed to be managed.
One other supply stated the Al-Awadi Reserve Power had armed reservists always who could possibly be used for crowd management.
