Dozens killed in Mumbai railway station stampede
Police say falling concrete led people to panic, thinking the bridge was collapsing
MUMBAI, INDIA— A stampede broke out on a crowded pedestrian bridge connecting two railway stations in Mumbai during the Friday morning rush, killing at least 22 people and injuring more than 30 others, Indian officials said.
Police were investigating what caused the stampede on the bridge, which led some commuters to leap over the railing. Others were crushed or fell underfoot and were trampled.
“There were too many people on the bridge, and the people were in a hurry and wanted to move out,” said Brijesh Upadhyay, one of the many caught in the crowd. “There was no- body helping, it was very suffocating, and we just wanted to get out of there — and fell on each other.”
One rescuer told Indian broadcaster NDTV that the stampede trapped dozens in the narrow passage, forcing rescuers to break the railing to pull people out.
Mumbai police official Gansham Patel said some falling concrete had hit part of the bridge railing, leading people to surge forward out of panic at the thought that the bridge was collapsing.
Commuters also often complain about hawkers selling their wares on the narrow overpass, which connects two commuter railway stations, Elphinstone and Parel.
Heavy rains meant the bridge was even more crowded than usual, as some sought shelter from the downpour under the canopy covering the bridge, said lawmaker Shaina Nana Chudasama of the governing Bhara- tiya Janata Party.
Hospitals were treating 32 injured people, including 19 women and 13 men.
As Mumbai police appealed to citizens to donate blood to help the injured, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the families of those killed.
“Prayers with those who are injured,” Modi tweeted.
Kishore Thakkar, another witness, said the bridge became overcrowded as people stopped, waiting for the rain to ease. “But then came a heavy push by people, causing some people to fall down and get crushed by the surge of passengers.”
He complained that government rescuers did not respond quickly to alerts sent by phone.
Tabrez Mukadam, a relative of a day worker who died in the stampede, said such accidents happen too often in India.