On October 6, it was 32 degrees Celsius between 11 am to 1 pm as per the data from the Indian Meteorological Department. I had arrived in Chennai the previous night, along with my three journalist friends from Hyderabad. We were there to witness the historical event-- aerobatic display by the IAF(Indian Air Force) to commemorate its 92nd raising day. We booked into a hotel close to the venue - Marina Beach.
Early in the morning, I took a stroll on the beach to catch a glimpse of the preparations ahead of the event.
As I walked past the iconic Santhome Cathedral Basilica, towards the lighthouse. Traffic police in white uniforms were making arrangements to barricade the Kamarajar Salai (Kamarajar Road) abutting Marina Beach. The service road was off limits for vehicles. Small vendors were not allowed to enter. When I spoke to Rajesh Kumar, who sells tender coconuts, he said, "Vendors who came before 6 am were allowed to enter. We depend on daily sales for our survival". He somehow managed to enter the beach with his tricycle cart laden with tender coconuts.
It was a routine morning portrait at the Marina with fitness enthusiasts pacing up their steps, pigeons looking for feeds on the shore and the Mounted Forces (Horse Squad) inspecting the shoreline.
Barriers were erected demarcating the landing zones for the IAF personnel who would do skydives and for helicopter stunts. Barring these, it was a quiet morning in the beach and its adjoining promenade which I used to enjoy during my previous stints in Chennai.
Then I went back to the room and checked out. I suggested Ratna cafe in Triplicane. It was brimming with people with multitudes waiting outside for their turn, holding out tokens issued by the restaurant.
I enquired. A waiter told me that Sundays would be busy but has never seen the sea of people trying to catch a meal from the food joint. It took me and my colleagues who have joined me in the quest of watching the air show about 30 min to get our seats.
After breakfast, we headed out to Marina Beach. As the Kamarajar Salai was blocked. Vehicles were queuing up. So we decided to reach the venue by foot. We arrived at the Kannagi statue, 20 min later. We saw a pool of excited faces waiting to witness the historic air show event. Every nook and corner of the beach was brimming with spectators.
Three-year-old Nakshatra with a tricolour in hand said, "I want to become a pilot". As time passed, the crowd gradually swelled. The onlookers, oblivious to the blazing sun, started cheering up for the airmen.
Mayurika, who accompanied me from Hyderabad to witness the event, was able to spot a tree near the beach and she took shelter from the scorching sun under its bower. "I found a small park near the Kannagi statue. But the policeman did not allow me inside. It was already packed, with the crowd taking refuge under the trees. I sneaked in and got a seat on a bench, where I dozed off for some time due to the exhaustion," she said, when we met again.
My colleagues Vikas Kaushik and Mukesh Mishra embarked on a separate adventure. They went and wanted to drench their legs at the sea. "We went to the sea. The shoreline was sweltering. I was thirsty. I could not find any drinking water source. As luck was on our side, we located a hawker selling lemon soda and water. I still felt dizzy, I thought it would be better for me to move towards our vehicle, parked some two kilometres away," Vikas said.
They returned and all of us decided that we had seen enough of the combat aircraft display and will get back to the car to escape the rising mercury. We left the air show while it was nearing its climax. Yet, we were not able to cross the Kamarajar Salai as waves of people thronged the road that was blocked earlier for VIP movement. So we took the subway but the big challenge was to arrive at the other side of the road from where the crowd kept surging from the opposite direction. It was all piled up from Triplicane to Royapettah. We managed to get out of the crowd around 1.30 pm and reached Mount Road. Road users trapped in the traffic became exhilarated when the fighter jets thundered in the sky, forgetting the struggle they were in to reach the air show venue.
The evening brought the news that several people fainted and some of them died. ETV Bharat's health journalist Ravichandran who was covering the event saw people fainting due to dehydration and were brought to the medical camps of the IAF and Chennai Municipal Corporation. The lane earmarked for VIPs and ambulances helped to convey them to the nearest government hospitals.
As per information shared by health department sources, five people died due to heatstroke amid high temperatures.
According to Tamil Nadu Medical and Family Welfare Minister Ma Subramanian, there was no stampede or crowd mismanagement. "Deaths were reported only due to dehydration. Deaths are indeed sorrowful. Politics should be kept away from this. Those who want to politicise this will fail,” he said. As per a state government report, 15 lakh people gathered in the beach sands to watch the air show.
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