Latest news with #ElcinaMakwana
Daily Mail
17 hours ago
- General
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE First funeral of British Air India crash victim: Mourners gather to pay tribute to mother-of-two killed in tragedy
The first funeral of a British Air India crash victim has taken place just hours after her body was released to her family. Mother of two Elcina Alpesh Makwana, 42, was visiting India for dental work and was staying with her parents. She is the first of 53 British nationals to die in the crash whose remains were returned by authorities. Ms Makwana, who lived in Hounslow, London, was described as 'gentle' and incredibly hard-working. Her body was formally identified through DNA testing and taken to Pensionpora Cemetery Vadodara in Gujarat on Sunday morning for funeral rites. Her husband Alpesh, 52, and her two children, aged seven and 11, flew out to India and arrived on Saturday ahead of a Roman Catholic service. Joseph Patelia, her uncle, described her as a 'gentle soul'. He said: 'Before take-off, she called her father to say she'd boarded safely and would call again once she landed. 'That call never came. She vanished just like that leaving us in shock, in tears, unable to believe what we were hearing. 'It's been a nightmare for the family.' She is the first of 53 British nationals to die in the crash whose remains were returned by authorities. Pictured: A video posted to social media appearing to show the plane descending in a controlled manner with a high nose angle and landing gear deployed He revealed that Ms Makwana, who previously ran a telecoms business with her husband, visited India regularly. He added: 'She travelled alone, and her husband Alpesh and their two young children, an 11-year-old daughter and a 7-year-old son, arrived here on Saturday.' Paying tribute to his niece, Mr Patelia said she supported poor children in India by paying for their education. He said: 'She had struggled a lot in life, moving to London over 15 years ago, taking on part-time jobs to support her family there and her parents here in India. She had no brothers, so she took on every responsibility herself. 'Her loss is devastating. She was the bond that held our entire family together.'
Telegraph
20 hours ago
- General
- Telegraph
Mother of two is first British Air India crash victim released to family
The first body of a British Air India crash victim has been released to her family. A funeral was held on Sunday for 'sweet' and 'gentle' mother of two Elcina Alpesh Makwana, 42, just three days after she told her parents not to worry as she boarded the flight to Gatwick Airport. Mrs Makwana, who was visiting India for dental work, is the first of 53 British nationals to die in the crash whose remains were returned by authorities. Family described Mrs Makwana, who lived in Hounslow, London, as 'a gentle soul' and incredibly hard-working. Her body was formally identified through DNA testing and taken to Pensionpora Cemetery Vadodara in Gujarat on Sunday morning for funeral rites. Her husband Alpesh, 52, and her two children, aged seven and 11, flew out to India and arrived on Saturday ahead of a Roman Catholic Service today. Her uncle Joseph Patelia told The Telegraph she had called her father Edwin Patelia to say she'd boarded safely but her sister later learnt the plane had crashed on the news. 'Before take-off, she called her father to say she'd boarded safely and would call again once she landed in London,' he said. 'That call never came. She vanished just like that leaving us in shock, in tears, unable to believe what we were hearing. 'About 15 minutes after that call, her younger sister Anne saw the news of a plane crash. She ran to her father and said, 'Please check if Elcina was on that flight.' That's when our nightmare began.' He revealed that Mrs Makwana, who previously ran a telecoms business with her husband, had come to India for dental treatment and to spend time with her parents. 'Elcina had come to India for dental treatment, it's quite expensive in the UK, and obviously to spend time with her parents,' he added. 'She'd been having frequent toothaches. She travelled alone, and her husband Alpesh and their two young children, an 11-year-old daughter and a 7-year-old son, arrived here just yesterday.' 'A truly gentle soul' Paying tribute to his niece, Mr Patelia said she was a 'gentle soul' and supported poor children in India by paying for education. 'Elcina was incredibly sweet, kind and generous, a truly gentle soul,' he said. 'She had adopted two children back home and was paying for their education. She gave quietly, never seeking attention. 'She had struggled a lot in life, moving to London over 15 years ago, taking on part-time jobs to support her family there and her parents here in India. She had no brothers, so she took on every responsibility herself. 'Her loss is devastating. She was the bond that held our entire family together.' Investigators are continuing to search the crash site in the Meghaninagar district of Ahmedabad 1.5km metres from the end of the runway at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner headed for London Gatwick crashed into a hostel where medical students and their families were living just 30 seconds after take-off. India has ordered urgent safety tests of Boeing 787s and the flight data recorder, known as the black box, had been recovered and was being looked into by investigators. Only one of the 241 people onboard survived the crash. The sole surviving passenger, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, from Leicester, was sitting in seat 11A.
