Air India plane crash: 70 tolas gold; at crash site, 1st responder's grit shines
GANDHINAGAR: A plume of smoke rose above BJ Medical College on the sunny afternoon of June 12. Flames licked the crumpled fuselage of a jumbo jet. Screams pierced the air. Raju Patel, 56, didn't stop to think.
When the sky fell, he stood up.
Just minutes away, the construction businessman raced to the AI 171 crash site with his crew, arriving within five minutes of impact. "For the first 15 to 20 minutes, we could barely get close. The fire was too intense," Patel said. "But once the first fire brigade and 108 ambulances arrived, we jumped in to help."
With no stretchers in sight, they used sarees and bedsheets to carry the injured.
"We did what we could," he said. Authorities allowed Patel's team to stay on-site until 9 pm.
As emergency services took control, Patel's team turned to what came next - combing the wreckage. Burned luggage lay scattered across the charred grounds. From the debris, they retrieved 70 tolas (over 800 grams) of gold jewellery, Rs 80,000 in cash, passports, and a Bhagawad Gita. All were handed over to the police.
Minister of state for home Harsh Sanghavi said Sunday that all salvaged personal belongings are being documented and will be returned to the next of kin.
"I'm just grateful we could do something," said Patel, whose volunteering history includes the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts. "I was just 100m from the civil hospital when a bomb went off. But the destruction here... the flames... I will never forget this," he added.
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