The 72-year-old woman had just landed in the country after a stint in the US
While 72-year-old Girija Raj Purohit was happy to have spent three months with her son in the US, her relief at being back on familiar shores was short-lived. While boarding an electric car at Terminal 2, the driver’s negligence resulted in her left thigh being severely fractured.
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The victim said that she called out to the driver twice to stop the vehicle, as her leg was caught between the tyre and the seat, but he didn’t hear her. File pic for representation
“My husband and I had alighted from the plane along with our daughter, and we were walking towards the belt from where she would go to the terminal, when an electric car halted. Two people were already seated. My husband first sat inside, and after I had just put one leg in, the driver started the car,” said Girija, recalling the ordeal that took place around 8.30 pm on Monday.
“I told him to stop twice, but he didn’t hear me. My leg got caught between the vehicle’s seat and tyre,” she added. To the horror of her co-passengers, her thigh bone (femur) cracked audibly. Airport officials were informed about the mishap, and she was rushed to Seven Hills Hospital in Andheri, in an ambulance.
The Chembur resident was scheduled for surgery at 8 am today. Suresh Raj Purohit, her son, said, “I had gone to the airport to pick her up. Her Dubai Emirates flight had landed early. I was informed how the driver’s negligence resulted in her getting severely injured, and we rushed to the hospital with her.”
He added, “They say that the new T2 is on par with international standards, and this is how they treat a senior citizen. She was in intense pain after her thigh bone cracked,” he added. While the family has not yet filed a complaint, the airport authorities are now footing their hospital bills.
“Our focus now is on getting her treated. Following her discharge, we will decide if we want to file an official complaint,” said Mohan Raj Purohit, a relative. A doctor from the hospital said that the stapling method would be used to treat her fractured femur, to align it with the leg. “Her condition is stable and she will be discharged four days or so after the operation,” he said.
The official spokesperson of Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) confirmed, “Yes, there was an unfortunate incident in which a lady passenger had an accidental fall while boarding the electric car at level 2 around 8.25 pm.
In less than a minute, an MIAL doctor attended to her. She suffered a blunt injury on her left thigh and was advised immediate hospitalisation. She was taken to Seven Hills Hospital with MIAL officials. MIAL is in touch with the family and is taking complete responsibility of the treatment, and all medical expenses.”
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