KEM Hospital

Victims of stampede

Suresh Jaiswar

Post-mortem reports indicate at least 3 victims of Friday's stampede, that killed 23, died of shock and not injuries or suffocationEven as Mumbaikars continue to shudder looking at photo graphs and videos of Friday's stampede on a foot over bridge connecting Elphinstone Road and Parel stations that killed 23 people, the post-mortem reports have indicated that at least three victims died of shock. The findings reiterate the survivors' accounts that the FOB had turned into a death trap, with absolutely no scope for escape.The post-mortems were conducted at, and it has come to light that 11-year-old Rohit Parab from Vikhroli, who was on his way to the Dadar market to help his flower-seller father, 61-year-old Alex Corriea, who ran a flower shop, and 42-year-old Sachin Kadam could have died of “neurological shock“.Dr Harish Pathak, who led a team of eight doctors that conducted the post-mortems, said Rohit, Corriea, and Kadam did not have major external or internal inju ries. “Only minor cuts and bruises. It appears they suffered a neurological shock which in acute cases results in the heart just stop ping,“ Pathak said. According to the autopsy reports, most of the victims of Friday's stampede died of multiple internal inju ries, including spine and fractures and injuries to chest, heart, and liver.“The nature of injuries suggested most victims were trampled upon,“ Pathak said. “In one case (Andheri resident), we found his lungs had ruptured. Several bodies sported substantial blunt impact on chest, which had led to severe asphyxia,“ he said.In cases of Rohit, Corriea and Kadam, Pathak said the viscera samples have been sent for histopathology and chemical analysis to determine the exact cause of death.