The stampede broke out around 10.30 am on the bridge between the busy Parel and Elphinstone Road stations in Mumbai.
MUMBAI: A heaving crowd, so oppressive that people try to escape
it either by jumping or by climbing over a railing, is on a mobile phone video
of the stampede that broke out at a railway bridge at
Mumbai's Elphinstone station this morning, leaving 22 dead and more than 30 wounded.
The tragedy was filmed on phones from a
platform opposite the bridge connecting the Elphinstone Road and Parel
stations. In
one video, a massive crowd was seen trying to climb down the bridge after four
trains arrived at the same time. Arms rose helplessly from the barely-moving
mass; some men climbed out to escape the crush, preferring to hang precariously
on to the railings.
People watched the crowd with growing horror and shouted,
perhaps sensing a tragedy about to happen.
The moments just after
the stampede have also been caught in extremely disturbing visuals. Bodies
strained against the railing and people tried to climb out, their feet on
somebody's face or limbs. At a closer look, men and women stuck in the pile
appeared lifeless, their arms limp, blood on their clothes.
Shruti Lokre, who survived the crush, said in a
series of tweets: "Stampede at Parel Station. I survived. I don't know
how… Before I realised, I was a part of that stampede."
Ms Lokre said she couldn’t believe she had come
out alive. "The only way to not give up on hope was to give hope to
someone else. It's gonna be alright, we will make it. Breathe, keep breathing,
look that guy is helping us. Don't worry, I am here. We are in it together.
Just few more minutes. (sic)," she wrote.
Relatives of stampede victims gather outside KEM Hospital as injured people are being treated.
The bridge was already overcrowded after the rain and many commuters had taken
shelter there. Witnesses said trains were
rolling in and some people wanted to get out of the station but others had
stopped, preferring to wait till the rain ended.
The narrow bridge is always crowded as it
receives much of Mumbai's commuter traffic. Over the years, there have been
demands for more bridges or at least a better one, but commuters say no one
listened. Today, the stampede reportedly started when after a sudden heavy
downpour, a few in the crowd slipped. The police are also investigating reports
that a loud noise after a short-circuit caused panic and triggered a rush.
Those who watched the crowd shouted in
alarm, perhaps sensing a tragedy about to happen.
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