Ganesh immersion festivities took a tragic turn late on Saturday night, when five devotees sustained severe electric shocks after accidentally coming into contact with a high-tension power line near Khairani Road in Sakinaka. One person died, while the rest were admitted to the hospital.
According to eyewitnesses, the accident happened when a group of devotees was accompanying a Ganesh idol for immersion and holding the rod of the vehicle on which the idol was placed. “The height of our idol was 23.5 feet. Tata Power`s high-tension wire was at 30 feet, so there was a good six feet distance between the two. However, at one point, there was another wire suspended vertically, connected to the horizontal high-tension wire. This wire touched the POP idol, and electric current passed through it to the entire vehicle,” said Arjun Gupta, an eyewitness and relative of those admitted to the hospital.
Shambhu Raghunath Kamat is a vegetable seller. PICS/RITIKA GONDHALEKAR
Locals and fellow devotees rushed to rescue those injured. Four of them were immediately shifted to Paramount Hospital in Sakinaka, while another was admitted to SevenHills Hospital. Despite doctors’ efforts, one of the devotees, Binu Shivkumar, could not survive his injuries. He was declared dead shortly after admission.
Two of the four survivors are currently in critical condition and have been placed in the Intensive Coronary Care Unit (ICCU) at Paramount Hospital, located just outside Sakinaka Metro station. Hospital authorities confirmed that the patients did not have severe burns but suffered shock-related injuries. “We have done a few blood tests and chest X-rays to be double sure, and they are being monitored closely,” said a doctor from the hospital.
Apart from them, 20-year-old Tushar Dinesh Gupta was shifted from the ICU to the general ward on Sunday morning as his condition stabilised. “Till this morning, I did not know what exactly had happened to me. It was only when my father told me that I came to know I had survived an electric shock. More than the real shock, hearing this from my father was a shock,” said the youth, who is pursuing an MSc in Computer Science at Thakur College in Kandivli.
Dharmaraj Gupta, survivor
Sharing his experience, another survivor, 52-year-old Dharmaraj Gupta, told mid-day, “Thanks to our rubber slippers, we were saved by the grace of Lord Ganesha. Had we not been wearing those, even we wouldn’t have been alive today.” Another survivor, Shambu Raghunath Kamat, 21, said, “I hope all my test reports come out fine and I get discharged quickly so that I can go back to work. I have an elder sister who is married. Now I am the oldest child in the house. I have a younger brother and ageing parents. We earn our livelihood selling vegetables.”
