Kumar Alankrit, a Bengaluru-based engineer, fled the Rameshwaram cafe explosion unscathed on Friday. He had walked outside to answer his mother's phone call barely a few seconds before a powerful explosion shook the cafe noted for its South Indian food. The explosion was reported at 1 pm, when several personnel from local IT businesses, including Alankrit, were eating lunch at the renowned restaurant.
Alankrit, a Bihar native, originally mistook it for a household cylinder burst and only learned of the larger disaster after watching TV news in the evening. The software engineer for a private organization in Bengaluru resides near Rameshwaram Cafe.
Speaking with Indian Express, Alankrit stated: “I went there about 12.30 pm and I had just finished eating idli and was about to eat dosa. My mother called me just to inquire how the day was going and also she was checking whether I had lunch. I had moved some 10-15 metres away from where the blast took and it saved me. It took me a while to come to terms that I remained unhurt."
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Kumar, who has been employed in Bengaluru for the past year, remembers that he had been working from home. “Incidentally, I used to sit near that tree where the blast took place to have my food whenever I go. My mother’s one phone call saved me,” he was quoted as saying by Indian Express in its report.
He stated that after the phone call, he exited the cafe to converse with his mother and was only 10-15 meters away from the eatery when he heard the explosion.
Kumar stated that as soon as the blast occurred, everyone began fleeing from the cafe, and they observed smoke enveloping the area. Initially, they presumed it to be a gas cylinder explosion.