Faridabad: Other than gusts of wind and a power cut, it was a normal evening for the Sehrawats in Parvatiya Colony here when tragedy struck from the sky in the form of a crashing plane, wiping away all the womenfolk of the family.
Fifty five-year-old Vedvati, her daughter Sarita (19) and daughter-in-law Rani (20) were killed when a chartered plane carrying a critically ill patient from Patna nosedived into their house in Gali no 3 of Mukesh Kunj at 10.35 pm.
The house, worst-hit among the two buildings that bore the brunt of the mishap, turned into a fireball after the crash. The head of the family Sobharam along with his son Deepak and nephew Yash were injured in the incident.
Neighbours of the "friendly and cordial" Sehrawat family are numb in shock after the cruel turn of fate. The family very recently had a happy occasion to observe -- the marriage of their 21-year-old son Deepak, who is a taxi-driver.
"Deepak just got recently married... on February 8. The family was very friendly and cordial. We cannot believe what has happened. We are in shock," said Sumit Singh, a student and next-door neighbour.
Local residents said the crash took place as strong winds were blowing.
"I was on the rooftop when I saw the plane losing control, swirling and turning in the gusty wind and catching fire in the sky itself. Within seconds, it crashed into the building. I was at a distance of 10 metres. It could have been our house too. I was very scared," said Singh.
The other house which was hit belonged to 37-year-old Chittaranjan Singh, who sustained minor injuries. The family had a lucky escape.
"Only one of my three children is here and the others have gone to our ancestral village. As soon as the plane hit the house, I rushed my wife and child to safety, during which I also sustained injuries in my right leg. It was a miraculous escape for us," said Chittaranjan.
He said the three women of Sehrawat family could not escape as they were all on the roof of their house. "The weather was hot and there was a power cut, so they had come to the rooftop," he said.
The Pilatus PC-12 single-engine turboprop aircraft belonging to Delhi-based Air Chartered Services India Limited crashed in Pravatiya Nagar near the IAF station here shortly before landing at IGI airport in Delhi, killing 10 people including the three persons on the ground.
The three dead women were cremated on Thursday morning in an emotionally surcharged atmosphere.
The cremation took place at the Janta Colony crematorium here with neighbours and acquaintances of the family attending. The funeral pyres were lit by Deepak, the son of Vedvati.
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