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Kerala floods hero who saved many lives dies crying for help

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Inside the rented house of Jinesh Jerone in Poonthura, his friends and family would often play on a loop videos of him swimming across murky waters to bring people to shore and safety when deadly floods hit Kerala in August. They would then read and reread newspaper clips that hailed him as a hero and saviour.Jinesh died on Sunday, begging passersby for help after being hit by a truck on a highway 12km from home. “He lay on the road, crushed below his waist, and screamed for help,” Jinesh’s friend Jagan told TOI on Tuesday.Jagan was riding pillion on Jinesh’s bike when they stumbled and fell. As Jinesh was flung off, a speeding truck, unable to halt in time, ran him over.“Nobody stopped,” Jagan said. Jinesh was barely 24. “I can’t believe something like this could happen to a man like Jinesh. He loved to help others. That’s what made him a hero during the recent floods,” Jagan said. Jinesh and his friends had rescued over 100 people during operations in Chengannur , one of the most severely affected places.It took more than 30 minutes before an ambulance reached them and rushed the two men to hospital. After a brief struggle, Jinesh was pronounced dead.Selvi, Jinesh’s mother, said, “When the church vicar called for a meeting seeking help from fishermen for the rescue mission, Jinesh and his six friends promptly took a boat and set off. They didn’t wait for anyone and other teams followed them only the next day.”In the house with its cracked roof, Jinesh had a small space to himself where he practiced dance moves. He and his friends called themselves Shining Stars. On a shelf there are trophies that he won for his cricketing skills.Many of those he saved have been silently coming to the house, thanking Selvi for what her son did. “His death should wake us all to the fact that we need to stop and help people hit by cars on India’s deadly roads. We are leaving them to die. It’s just terrible,” one of them said.