Hyderabad Airport Scare: Aerobridge Panel Falls On Air India Express Passenger, Injures Flyer

A ceiling panel from an aerobridge at Hyderabad airport fell on an Air India Express passenger, injuring him. He was hospitalised and later discharged.

A large metal panel from an aerobridge ceiling at Hyderabad airport fell on 63-year-old Air India Express passenger Deepak Adoni.

Source : PTI

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A large metal panel from the ceiling of an aerobridge at Hyderabad airport fell on an Air India Express passenger's head, causing internal injuries and leaving him dazed and giddy. Deepak Adoni, a US citizen who came to India on work, told PTI that he was among the first few passengers to exit the flight that arrived from Bengaluru on Sunday afternoon.

"I had taken a few steps when the heavy panel fell on my head, and I instinctively held on to the railing to steady myself, not knowing what hit me," Adoni, 63, said on Monday.

He said a young woman behind him, Zainab Sayed, rushed to help him and screamed for help as he leaned on the wall of the aerobridge.

Help came about 30 minutes later, and Adoni was rushed to Apollo hospital in an ambulance, where a CT scan showed "severe degenerative changes" to the cervical spine, "multilevel disc bulges" and "trivial head trauma", according to the attending doctor's report.

It is not clear whether the spine issue was an existing condition or the result of the incident.

Adoni said, "Initially, I was OK, but within 30 minutes I started to feel dizzy, and in fact, I started to stutter and could not remember my name" during the admission process at Apollo.

He said, "Zainab travelled with me in the ambulance and took the time to speak with my wife in the US. An amazing human being".

At the hospital, doctors administered an MRI in addition to the CT Scan.

"All through the process, I could not stand, and people had to help me. At one point, when I sat down, the entire room started to spin," he said.

It is not known what caused the aluminium panel -- roughly 7-8 feet in length and 2 feet wide -- to get dislodged and fall.

Adoni, originally a native of Telangana before he went to the United States about four decades ago, said an airport official stayed with him at the hospital overnight until he was discharged on Monday.

Doctors advised him to wear a neck brace and prescribed painkillers for the neck and head aches.

Adoni said he will not return to the US immediately and will monitor his condition before deciding on the next course of action.

He said this includes possible legal action against GMR.

Airport authorities said, "We sincerely regret this unfortunate incident," adding that Adoni sustained "no acute or significant injuries".

A statement said airport maintenance teams have conducted "a safety inspection of the aerobridge ceiling panels to prevent future occurrences".

"We sincerely regret this unfortunate incident, in which a panel from the false ceiling of an aerobridge hit a passenger while disembarking on Sunday afternoon." Airport authorities and emergency medical teams immediately attended to the passenger, Deepak Adoni. To ensure his safety, he was promptly transported via ambulance to Apollo Hospital for a comprehensive medical evaluation, including an MRI, the statement said.

Hospital authorities confirmed that he sustained no acute or significant injuries from the impact. After completing all necessary observations and tests, he was medically cleared and discharged.

Airport maintenance teams have since conducted a safety inspection of the aerobridge ceiling panels to prevent future occurrences. This was an isolated instance, and we remain committed to ensuring high standards of safety and operations, the statement added. 

This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.