The sole survivor of the Air India disaster, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, carried his brother’s coffin to his funeral just hours after being discharged from the hospital.
Vishwash had escaped from the burning Boeing 787 Dreamliner moments before it exploded, killing all 241 others onboard, including his brother Ajay. The crash occurred in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, on June 12.
Footage showed Vishwash, limping and covered in plasters, balancing Ajay’s coffin on his shoulder as mourners paraded through the streets.
Vishwash’s family from Leicester flew to India to support him. Both brothers, natives of Diu, had been visiting relatives. Ajay was later cremated by his family.
Vishwash’s survival has been described as a miracle. Seated in 11A by an emergency exit, he managed to crawl out, while Ajay, seated at 11J, was among the victims.
He told DD News: “I saw people dying in front of my eyes – the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me … I walked out of the rubble.”
He described what happened before the crash and said: “When the flight took off, within five to 10 seconds it felt like it was stuck in the air.
“Suddenly, the lights started flickering – green and white.
“The aircraft wasn’t gaining altitude and was just gliding before it suddenly slammed into a building and exploded.”
Watch video from Ajay’s funeral below.
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