RAJKOT: At least 130 people were feared dead and scores injured when a just-renovated 140-year-old suspension bridge over the algae-lined Machchhu river in Gujarat’s Morbi collapsed Sunday evening under the weight of an estimated 400-strong holiday crowd, barely five days after the structure had been reopened to the public.
Chaotic scenes unfolded in the hospital as doctors struggled to handle the massive influx of injured people — and bodies. Tracing the injured people was a tough task for relatives as well as for those whose kin were missing.
No consolation was enough for Mona Movar, who lost her 11-year-old daughter while her husband and younger son fought for their lives at Morbi Civil Hospital after the bridge collapse on the Machchhu river.
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“I am with my sister and she has not stopped crying. My nephew and brother-in-law are battling for their lives. Our relatives are at the hospital and I am trying to take my sister home,” Mona’s sister Sonal, who works with an NGO, told TOI.
The Movars’ misery was part of the innumerable heart-wrenching scenes at the government hospital as the families of the bridge collapse victims wailed inconsolably and bodies continued to flood the hospital till late Sunday.
Arifsha Shahmadar was seen tending to his wounds beside the body of his wife and that of his five-year-old-son. His six-year-old daughter is still missing. “Arifsha’s wife and son died and his daughter is missing. His sister, who came to Morbi from Jamnagar, also died and her two children are missing and one child of Arif’s brother is missing,” Arifsha’s friend Mohsin Makadiya said.
Sumitra Thakkar, a Morbi resident and a member of an NGO, says her colleagues had been struggling to find doctors for injured relatives. “It is a Sunday and I was informed that owing to the festive season, there were fewer doctors even in private hospitals. Today’s collapse brings us memories of the Machchu dam tragedy of 1979,” Sumitra said. Thousands were feared dead in the 1979 disaster when the dam over the Machchhu river had given way after unprecedented rain.
The Morbi government hospital had to rope in private practitioners and paramedics. A team of 30 was sent from other parts of the state.
Help came from nearby Rajkot. Its collector Arun Mahesh Babu said: “We have sent doctors, 33 ambulances, firefighters, SDRF and NDRF teams for the rescue. We are mobilising the navy, the air force and the army. They are coming with lifeboats and other equipment.”
