Horrific scenes unfolded at BJ Medical College in Ahmedabad on Thursday afternoon after an Air India flight, AI-171 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed into the medical hostel complex, ki:lling hundreds and leaving the community in sh0ck.
It was around 1:30pm, lunchtime at the BJ Medical College hostel. Dozens of MBBS students, many aged between 18 and 22, had gathered in the dining hall of the five-storey building. Just 3km from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, the occasional roar of jets was a familiar sound.
But this time, it was different.
At 1:38pm, the Air India aircraft slammed into the white concrete building, erupting into a massive fireball and turning the sky a fiery orange. Disoriented students tried to escape through black clouds of soot and towering flames. The ground was littered with shattered glass, mangled metal, and food now buried beneath ash.
“I was having food with my friends when I heard a loud blast like a crash. Next, I realized the roof had collapsed and I lay buried underneath… I thought I would become unconscious, but I did not. About half an hour later, rescuers pulled me out,” recalled a second-year MBBS student.
The tail cone of the aircraft was found lodged near the top of the building, with stabilizer fins still attached.
Casualties and Ongoing Rescue
According to Dr. Minakshi Parikh, dean of the college:
“Four MBBS students living in the hostel died, 19 were injured—five of them seriously. Two third-year students are still untraceable. A doctor’s wife also died, and several relatives of other doctors were injured. Three members of a doctor’s family are missing.”
Dhaval Gameti, president of the Resident Doctors’ Association, estimated that 50–60 people were injured, with several relatives of superspecialty doctors still unaccounted for.
The crash affected the entire college complex, including six buildings, four of which serve as hostels. Charred trees, collapsed roofs, and scorched debris turned the site into what one witness called a “war zone.”
A water tank was found resting precariously on one of the plane’s engines atop a smaller building. Part of what appeared to be an emergency door lay buried in rubble near the main gate.
Ramila, mother of a student, told ANI: “My son is safe. He jumped from the second floor and was injured.”
Amisha Patel, a 25-year-old pharmacy employee who had joined a friend for lunch, said: “Suddenly there was a crash. The area filled with smoke. I panicked and jumped from the third floor. I have multiple fractures, including one in my left leg.”
Her friend managed to escape down the stairs.
Haresh Shah, an eyewitness, reported: “The plane was flying very low before it crashed. The sound was like a blast. Both the plane and the building caught fire.”
Locals were among the first to respond, pulling survivors from the debris. Mobile phone videos captured charred bodies amidst the wreckage—haunting evidence of the impact.
As night fell, flashing red and blue emergency lights illuminated the compound. Personnel from the Indian Army and NDRF worked tirelessly to sift through the ruins. The nearby Asarwa Civil Hospital, just meters away, remained miraculously untouched.
Despite the rescue effort, officials reported that 4–5 students remain missing and may not have survived.
The 242 people included 217 adults and 11 children, a source told Reuters. Of them, 169 were Indian nationals, 53 were Britons, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian, Air India said.
Aviation tracking site Flightradar24 said the plane was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service.
🕯️ Our thoughts are with the victims, families, and the entire BJ Medical College community during this devastating time.
Source: hindustantimes.com