Photo: Piyal Bhattacharjee
NEW DELHI: A deafening noise, car parts tossed into the air, and several bodies strewn across – eyewitnesses who found themselves near the spot of Monday evening’s blast outside Red Fort metro station recalled scenes of complete chaos, destruction and trauma. The force of the explosion was immense, felt far and wide. The window at Gate No. 1 metro station – on the opposite side of the road – was completely shattered. Within seconds, debris was scattered everywhere, and fear and panic set in. “I heard the voice 300 metres away, behind Lala Lajpat Rai Market. We came out and saw people running,” said Vinod Kumar (40), a coolie in Bhagirath Palace. “I have never heard such a loud blast ever in my life. I fell three times due to the explosion. It felt as if we were all going to die…,” recalled a local shopkeeper. At the site, slippers and shoes were seen lying in several places, left by the hundreds who ran for their lives – rushing off in different directions and into the closest lane they could find. Some vehicles passing by near Gate No. 4 metro station were left abandoned mid-road by drivers who feared another explosion. Jamna, a 50-year-old woman, stood crying near the barricade, frantically looking for her son Arjun. Disoriented and trembling, she said, “He sells flowers in a nearby market… I can’t find him now…” Police cordoned off the area and set up barricades. Shopkeepers, who had moments earlier been going about their day, were seen searching for their vehicles or trying to reach their loved ones to make sure they were safe. Akshay (41), a business man whose electronics shop was just 200 metres away, said, “No one could figure out what happened. Several cars were damaged. It felt like the ground was shaking. People said it was a CNG blast, but it felt like something else…” Amid the chaos, there were also good Samaritans like Chander Prakash and his friend Abhijeet Singh, who sprang into action to help the injured. “We were near the temple when we heard two loud blasts,” Prakash recalled, his voice shaking. “Suddenly, there was mayhem – people screaming, fireballs everywhere and debris flying in all directions. We rushed to assist the injured, lifting them and helping carry them into ambulances.” Jai (49), a watch shop owner travelling from Lala Lajpat Rai Market towards Kashmere Gate, had a close shave as he was just 10 metres from the spot. “I parked my scooty some distance away due to the rush and took an e-rickshaw with two others. Within a minute, I heard a noise so loud my ears got blocked. Then I saw car parts flying and scattered body parts,” Jai said. Maujib (24), who was at a nearby traffic signal, recalled the panic: “There was a huge crowd, and the moment we heard a loud noise, everyone just scrambled and ran for their lives.” Hours later, the usually crowded area with barely any space to walk stood eerily empty under the flashing lights of police and emergency teams.(With inputs from Kushagra Singh)
