Ahmedabad: In a tragedy that shook the nation, 241 of the 242 passengers on board a London-bound Air India flight lost their lives in a catastrophic plane crash shortly after take-off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The lone survivor, Vishwaas Kumar Ramesh, a British national of Indian origin, has shared his harrowing account of the incident, which is being hailed as nothing short of a miracle.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Vishwaas at the hospital to meet the only survivor of what is now one of India’s worst aviation disasters in recent memory. During their emotional interaction, the Prime Minister asked Vishwaas how he managed to survive such a devastating crash.
“I still don’t know how I survived,” Vishwaas replied.
“Everything happened in front of my eyes. I thought I would die too. But when I opened my eyes, I found myself alive. I somehow unbuckled my seat belt and tried to get out. Eventually, I managed to escape. I saw the air hostess, the passengers… they were all gone right in front of me.”
Seated in the Impact Zone
Vishwaas was in seat 11-A, situated in the front section of the plane that collided with the ground floor of a building during the crash. Despite the chaos, he remained conscious long enough to find a way out of the wreckage.
“The section I was in hit the building’s base floor. There was a small opening. As soon as the emergency door cracked open, I saw a way out and I just ran,” he recalled.
Injured, But Alive
In the process of escaping, his left arm suffered burns from the fire that engulfed the aircraft. “I saw bodies burning… I saw the crew and passengers… I was terrified,” he said in an interview with Doordarshan. Emergency responders rushed him to a nearby hospital, where he is now recovering. His condition is said to be stable.
An Unimaginable Scene
Vishwaas recounted the moments just after the crash as chilling and traumatic.
“There was no time to think. The plane had broken apart. The other half slammed into a wall, which is likely why no one else made it. I had no idea what to do… I was just trying to survive.”
Prime Minister’s Visit and Support
Prime Minister Modi not only expressed his condolences but also praised Vishwaas’s courage. He assured him of all necessary support during recovery. Hospital staff noted that Vishwaas has shown remarkable resilience despite the trauma and grief.
As authorities continue investigations into the cause of the disaster, Vishwaas’s survival stands as a haunting reminder of fate’s unpredictability—a single breath of life amidst unbearable loss.
