'Felt like earthquake, sky turned black': Ahmedabad resident recalls moment when Air India plane crashed

The deadly plane crash in Ahmedabad not only left a void in the families of the deceased but also imprinted a dreadful memory of suffering and agony on the minds of eyewitnesses. Air India’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight that crashed shortly after take-off with 242 passengers on board marks one of the biggest aircraft disasters in history.

A man who lives 200 metres away from the crash site said he heard “a loud thud” at first. Elaborating further, the eyewitness, a driver by profession, told Hindustan Times, "I thought it was an earthquake but when I ran outside, I saw parts of a plane and lots of smoke.”  Flight AI171 en route to London Gatwick from Ahmedabad went down at around 1:40 pm.

He added, “For the next hour, I couldn’t see anything because huge plumes of smoke had covered the area after the crash. The sky was black. My neighbours and I were among the first to rush to the college building."

The wreckage of the Air India flight lay scattered across the BJ Medical College hostel complex in Meghani Nagar as police, firemen and paramedics launched a search and rescue operation. Only Vishwaskumar Ramesh, a British national of Indian origin, survived the deadly crash.

According to another eyewitness, a “massive sound” was heard, following which thick black smoke engulfed the area. Even vehicles in the parking lot caught fire. The hostel buildings where several undergraduate and postgraduate medical students were having lunch were also on fire after the plane crash severely damaged their structure.

‘Thought there was a terror attack’

The owner of Risa Air Express Office, Ashutosh Pandey, narrated the horrifying scenes as witnessed from his nearby office. He said, “Initially, I thought there was a terror attack, similar to the 2008 incident at Asarwa Civil Hospital. The parking lot vehicles caught fire due to the plane crash, and the residential hostel for doctors was also engulfed in flames. The entire area was filled with smoke and fire.”

Among the 230 passengers onboard, 169 were Indians, 53 were British nationals, seven were Portuguese, and one was a Canadian. The crash occurred near Gujarat’s largest medical facility, Asarwa Civil Hospital, which houses over 2,800 beds.

(With inputs from HT)