MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: For most it has been a nightmare they are just glad to survive.

Emerging from the shock and debris of one of the worst terror attacks on European soil, Indian passengers evacuated from Brussels flew into Mumbai and Delhi on Thursday and Friday , some smiling, others teary , as they hugged their loved ones.

Jet Airways flew 423 stranded passengers to Delhi, Mumbai and Toronto on Friday. But most of them had to leave their baggage behind as the Brussels airport security officials told all passengers to vacate the terminal buildings immediately after Tuesday's blasts. However, Jet had to book 11 flyers into a hotel in Brussels as they refused to fly home without their bags.

For most passengers, though, returning home after the harrowing experience was the only thought on their minds, even if it meant leaving their luggage behind. The Indians who returned from Brussels on Friday came back with harrowing tales.

Recalling the attack in the Belgian capital, Venkat Narayan, whose flight from Mumbai had landed at 7.15 am local time in Brussels on Tuesday , said: “I was looking for breakfast when I heard a mild boom.'' Francis Dsouza, who was travelling from the US to India to visit his family, said he had just stepped out of a washroom when he saw people running and shouting.

“Before I could understand what was happening, the airport loudspeakers blared, `Evacuate, Evacuate'. I grabbed my phone, wallet and passport and ran. It was a stampede,'' said Dsouza, who arrived in Mumbai on Friday .

“We have been hearing about these terror attacks for past several years but living it was worse than any nightmare... we lost all our hopes of returning back home alive. We had no clue what to do, where to go and whom to approach,“ said Satnam Singh, who was on a vacation in Brussels and was among the 242 passengers and 28 crew members who arrived in Delhi on Friday morning.

After their evacuation from the Brussels airport, the travellers were moved to an army camp where they stayed for 36 hours before going to Amsterdam.

“When we reached the army camp, we had no clue about our return to Delhi.I had no hopes of returning soon,“ said Jasleen Singh, 52, who was stranded along with her seven family members while waiting for their flight to Toronto, after landing in Delhi.

“We received help from the local authorities but amid the commotion, most of the passengers lost their luggage,“ recounted Pradeep Sharma (56) from Delhi, who was on a business trip and was waiting for his flight back to India.

Some passengers returned to India carrying just a plastic bag. Pune's Jaydeep Karande the only member in his family to have ever travelled abroad who was returning home after working as a bartender in Kentucky for a year had to leave behind bags packed with gifts for the loved ones.

“For me, the only important thing is that my son comes back to me safe and sound,“ said Lalita, Jaydeep's mother, who travelled to Mumbai with her family to receive her son who alighted from Amsterdam-Delhi-Mumbai flight 9W1229.



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