Lone survivor of Air India plane crash not talking to anyone, getting psychiatric help to deal with trauma
The lone survivor of the Air India plane crash is getting psychiatric help to deal with the resulting trauma of the accident that left his brother and 259 others dead.
India Today reported that Ramesh Viswashkumar, according to his cousin Sunny, is not talking to anyone.
"Many people, including our relatives living abroad, call us to enquire about Vishwas's well-being. But he does not talk to anyone. He is yet to overcome the mental trauma of the crash and the death of his brother," he said. "He still wakes up in the middle of the night and finds it difficult to fall asleep again.
Sunny shared that they took Ramesh to a psychiatrist two days ago "to find a remedy."
His cousin isn't looking to return to his residence in London yet "because his treatment has just begun."
Ramesh, a British national who visited his family in India, was about to fly back to London on June 12 when the plane crashed just after taking off from Ahmedabad Airport.
The plane carried 242 passengers, including 217 adults and 11 children. Of them, 169 were Indian nationals, 53 were Britons, seven were Portuguese, and one was Canadian. Two pilots and 10 cabin crew were also aboard.
The plane also hit B.J. Medical College, whose campus is near the end of the runway of the airport. The preliminary report stated that the death toll was at 260.
Authorities said Ramesh had been sitting near the plane's emergency exit and managed to jump out. It wasn't clear whether he did before the plane made impact. Ramesh is reportedly married and has a son.
The New York Times reported that Nayan, Ramesh's brother, recalled him saying after emerging from the wreckage, "I don't know how I am alive."
Ramesh then spoke with their father via video call from next to the wreckage and said, “Our plane crashed. I have no idea how I got outside.”
"He was like: 'I can’t see my brother [Ajay]. I can’t see any other passengers,'" Nayan added, noting Ramesh was "just in shock." (Ramesh told Indian media that Ajay had been seated in a different row on the plane, and he asked for help to find Ajay.)
Ramesh was then rushed to the hospital. A doctor who examined him said he was “disoriented, with multiple injuries all over his body."
Ramesh was discharged from the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on June 17. That day, the mortal remains of his brother Ajay were also handed over to their family after a DNA match.
