British man describes how he escaped Air India wreckage

The British man who was the only survivor of the Air India airplane accident on Thursday said that he had managed to escape the wreckage thanks to an opening in the fuselage.

“I managed to unclog, to use my leg to go through this opening and I crawled,” Vishwashkumar Ramesh told Indian State Media DD News.

Mr. Ramesh, 40, was at the 11A headquarters on the Boeing 787 flight to London when he fell shortly after taking off in Ahmedabad, Western India on Thursday.

Air India said that all other passengers and crews were killed – including 169 Indian nationals and 52 British nationals. Until now, more than 200 bodies have been recovered, although it is not clear how many were passengers and how many were from the ground.

Speaking from his hospital bed, Ramesh said that the lights inside the plane “began to vacillate” a few moments after takeoff.

In five to 10 seconds, it seemed that the plane was “stuck in the air,” he said.

“The lights began to wave the green and the white … suddenly slammed in a building and exploded.”

The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a building used as accommodation for doctors in Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College and the Civil Hospital.

But Mr. Ramesh, a Leicester businessman who has a four -year -old woman and son, said the section he was sitting in landing near the ground and had not contacted the building.

“When the door broke and I saw that there was space, I tried to get out of there and I did it.

“No one could have left the opposite side, which was towards the wall, because he crushed it.”

The cause of the accident is not yet known. Officials say that a black box has been recovered from the accident site, according to press agencies, which can provide additional information to investigators.

The video shared on social networks has shown that Mr. Ramesh walking towards an ambulance with smoke which escapes in the background.

He told the Indian diffuser that he could not believe that he had come out of the living wreckage.

“I saw people die before my eyes-the air hostesses and two people I saw near me,” he said.

“For a while, I felt like I was going to die too, but when I opened my eyes and I looked around, I realized that I was alive.

“I still can’t believe how I survived. I got out of the rubble.”

Dr. Dhaval Gameti, who treated Mr. Ramesh, said that he was “disoriented, with multiple wounds over his whole body”, but that he seems “by danger”.

Friday morning, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the accident site before going to the hospital to meet injured, including Ramesh, and the families of the victims.

A Downing Street spokesman said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had been “in contact with Mr. Ramesh this morning to provide consular support”.

Mr. Ramesh was born in India but lived In the United Kingdom since 2003. His brother, Ajay, was also aboard the plane.

Their cousin, Hiren Kantilal, said they had been in India for a few months on vacation.

He said that the family spoke to Mr. Ramesh on Friday morning, adding that he had been able to walk and speak to them “correctly”.

“We want to go out as soon as possible and meet … Vishwashkumar,” he said.

He added that they were looking for additional support from the British government to go to India, which he said that they had not yet received.

The BBC asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if it was in contact with Mr. Ramesh’s family.

A spokesperson confirmed that they were in contact with Mr. Ramesh and said: “Our consular staff is ready to support families of British nationals who were on board India Flight AI171.”

After the crash, THE The foreign office has set up waiting lines For British nationals in the United Kingdom and India, requiring consular assistance, or for those who have concerns for friends or family.