CHENNAI: Sivaranjini, the wife of Karthikeyan (34) who was among the five persons died at the Marina after the Indian Airforce’s air show, had to wait for nearly two hours along with her three-year-old child near Muthamizh Arignar bus station at Anna Square, waiting for her husband who never turned up.
Speaking to TNIE about the horror on Sunday, she said the three of them started early from the Marina, and Karthikeyan asked her to wait near the bus station before going to take the bike, parked near Napier Bridge.
“I kept calling him, but couldn’t reach him due to poor signal. Around 3.20 pm, someone answered the call and told me that he had fainted,” she said. The passerby also sent her the location of where he was found. With the help of the police, she rushed to the spot and Karthikeyan was taken to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, where he was declared dead after 15 minutes.
Karthikeyan’s family members and friends who were at the hospital said his life could have been saved had the phones were reachable and he was taken to the hospital on time.
“He fainted on the way to take his bike. The ambulance also got stuck in the crowd and arrived at the spot late,” they said, urging the government to provide a job to his wife so that she can manage the family.
They also added that the doctors indicated that he could have died of dehydration or food poisoning and the report will take two weeks.
The family of Karthikeyan initially refused to receive his body from Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital. However, they accepted it after officials spoke to them.