Woman seen wailing in Gambhira bridge collapse video lost 6 family members

A video of a woman desperately crying for help to save her drowning child following the collapse of the Gambhira bridge in Mahisagar River went viral and brought forth her helplessness.  

In the visuals that surfaced in the aftermath of the incident, 35-year-old Sonalben Padhiyar was seen crying, saying her husband and son had drowned.

A resident of Dariyapur in Padra, Sonalben sustained injuries and was admitted to Sayaji Hospital in Vadodara. 

Narrating her ordeal, she said, “Since I only had three daughters, we vowed a visit to Bagdana in Bhavnagar temple after my son's birth.” 

The family, including Sonalben, husband Rameshbhai (38), daughter Vedika (4), son Naitik (2), son-in-law Pravinbhai, brothers-in-law Vakhatsinh and Hasmukhbhai, had set off for Bagdana at 7 am on Wednesday. 

However, out of the seven family members, only Sonalben has survived the horrific incident.

The video making the rounds on social media, captured Sonalben’s heart-wrenching cries, while trying to wade through waist-deep water in the Mahisagar River. 

“Maro dikro dubi gayo, Maro gharwalo dubi gayo… (My son has drowned, my husband has drowned)... Please save them,” she screamed.

“No one came to help for an hour, and then a boat rescued me,” said Sonalben.

Other survivors of the dreadful incident

“I grabbed a hanging pipe and pulled myself out”

Dilipbhai Padhiyar, 38, from Nani Sherdi village near Gambhira works in the canteen of a company. Padhiyar said, “I was returning home from work on my bike. Suddenly, the bridge collapsed and I was thrown down with it. For a moment, I was completely unaware of what had happened. When I regained consciousness, I was submerged in water. I grabbed a pipe that was hanging from the bridge and managed to hold on. Later, people rescued me from the water.”

“Braked just in time and narrowly escaped” 

Sanjaybhai Chavda, 25, from Navapura, Vadodara said, “I was riding my bike on the way to work when I had to brake suddenly. Right in front of me, the bridge collapsed and five to six vehicles fell into the river. We jumped off our bikes and managed to save ourselves. My bike remained on the edge. At that moment, it felt like an earthquake had struck. A rickshaw, a bike, and other vehicles fell in, but my three friends and I, along with a few others—around five to six people—were rescued safely.”

“Saw my aunt calling for help in a video, rushed to the spot”

Dharmesh Vasudevbhai Parmar, 35, from Mohmadpura village near Padra brought his injured aunt to Sayaji Hospital. Parmar said, “I saw a video of the bridge collapse on social media, and recognised the woman calling for help while standing in the water—it was my aunt Sonalben. I rushed to the spot and brought her to Sayaji Hospital for treatment.”

“When I woke up, the truck was in the water. I climbed on top”

Rajubhai from Dwarka was transporting caustic soda with his uncle Meramanbhai. He said, “I had fallen asleep while my uncle was driving. Suddenly, the bridge collapsed and we fell into the water. I woke up abruptly. The truck had nose-dived, and I climbed on its back. Later, people arrived on a boat and rescued me. My uncle’s whereabouts are still unknown.”

“Held on to a floating sack and survived”

Ratanbhai Parmar, 42, from Dehvan village near Borsad was returning home from a company near Ekalbara. Parmar said, “I was crossing the bridge when it collapsed, and I fell into the water along with my bike. I managed to grab one of the floating sacks in the water, which kept me from drowning. Eventually, a boat rescued me. My companion Bhupendrabhai, who was on the bike with me, is still missing.”

Both Ratanbhaihai and Bhupendrabhai were returning home from their night shift.

“There were huge potholes on the bridge, traffic was moving slowly”

Tanker driver Ganpatsinh Rajput, 40, from Udaipur, Rajasthan, was transporting sulfuric acid from Dahej to Kandla. Rajput said, “The potholes on the bridge were so big that it was impossible to drive at normal speed. There was slow-moving traffic on the bridge. Suddenly, the bridge collapsed and my tanker fell into the river. I broke the windshield and climbed out. I sat on a nearby pillar until rescuers arrived by boat and saved me.”