Hyderabad manhole tragedy: Braveheart didn't heed danger, gave his life
He was cautioned as he was unskilled and did not have safety gear.
Hyderabad: Cab driver N. Gangadhar was repeatedly told by the ambulance staff not to jump into the manhole at Madhapur on Saturday last, but he risked his life to try and save three workers who were caught in it.
Within five minutes, he too stopped responding, said 108 ambulance service supervisors who were present at the spot. He could have been saved if the rescuers had dug up the manhole quicker, they added.
Gangadhar, 30, and his family had come from Kurnool and were residents of Parvathnagar, Madhapur. The Board will compensate his family.
108 Cyberabad division supervisor E. Ratnam said, “Gangadhar was repeatedly advised not to jump into the manhole since he was unskilled and had no safety devices. As the situation was tense, he jumped in ahead of ambulance driver Chandrashekar Chary. In about five minutes he stopped responding.”
Gangadhar’s uncle N. Brahma said, “Gangadhar had gone to Ayyappa Society to visit his relative, he was off duty on Saturday. The witnesses present at the spot told us that he had stopped there when the workers were calling out. None of us would have known of Gangadhar’s act if his cousin Rammu wasn’t present at the rescue operation. Rammu stopped as he spotted Gangadhar’s car but he was missing. When the rescue team and police were pulling out the bodies, Rammu identified Gangadhar.”
“He would be the first to help in the basthi area; he was such a soft hearted person that he even gave up eating meat as he hated animal slaughter. His wife, son and daughter are in a state of shock,” Mr Brahma said.