Yasmin Vohra, a 51-year-old woman from Vadodara, had postponed her flight to London from June 9 to June 12, wanting to be by the side of her two pregnant daughters-in-law during their final trimester. One of them, the wife of her younger son, was expecting her first child.
Yasmin had carefully planned the journey, lovingly packing toys, lipsticks, clothes and traditional superfoods to support her daughters-in-law. It was meant to be a joyful family reunion and the beginning of a new chapter. But her plans ended in unimaginable tragedy.
Yasmin boarded Air India Flight AI171 on Thursday afternoon, headed for London Gatwick. Shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into a medical hostel in Meghani Nagar, a densely populated area just outside the airport’s perimeter.
The crash killed 242 people on board and at least 24 others on the ground. Yasmin’s nephew Parwez, who was travelling with her, also died. His wife, who is expecting a child, remains unaware of her husband’s fate.
Yasmin’s husband, Yasin Vohra, now waits in the scorching heat outside the PM Centre at Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad. DNA profiling is underway to identify the victims, and he continues to hold on to hope for a proper farewell. “After we dropped her at the airport, we had barely reached Anand when we heard about the crash,” he said.
“When I learnt the aircraft had 1.25 lakh litres of fuel, I knew deep inside I would never see her again. Yet I went to the hospital searching for her, only to see bodies and injured being rushed in.”
He now scrolls through CCTV footage of his wife bidding farewell to neighbours before leaving for the airport. “She said sorry to everyone in case she had ever made a mistake,” he recalls. “We didn’t know she was saying her final goodbye.”
Their granddaughters still ask for Yasmin. “Where is Dadi? Where are our gifts?” they wonder. Yasin says he doesn’t have the heart to tell them the truth.
Once the formalities are complete and Yasmin’s remains are identified, Yasin will take what he describes as the longest journey of his life – to bring her home one last time.
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