The ambulances carrying the bodies of the five students and a teacher arrived at the Baselios Vidyanikethan Senior Secondary School in Mulanthuruthy, Ernakulam at 2.50 pm on October 6, Thursday. Teachers who had gathered at the school early in the morning lined up on one side of the school quadrangle in an attempt to see their colleague and students one last time. Current and former students of the school as well as members of the general public too came in the hundreds. Tears held in check until then started flowing freely and loud wails were heard as the bodies were kept in the school for the public to pay homage.
Physical education teacher VK Vishnu (33), and students Emmanuel CS (17), Anjana Ajith (17), Diya Rajesh (15), Criss Winterborn Thomas (15) and Elna Jose (15) lost their lives in a tragic accident on Wednesday night. They were part of a group that was on a school excursion to Ooty when their bus rammed into a Kerala Road Transport Corporation Bus near Vadakkancherry around 11.45 pm.
Transport Minister Antony Raju, Public Works and Tourism Minister Mohammed Riyas, Leader of Opposition VD Satheeshan, Piravom MLA Anoop Jacob, Kottayam MP Thomas Chazikadan, Kunnathunadu MLA PV Srinijin, Mons Joseph, K Babu and other prominent leaders were present to pay their respects. MLA Anoop Jacob stayed the entire time, joining the police force and other organisers in managing the crowds.
As friends and family carried in the body of the PT teacher Vishnu, it was an emotionally charged atmosphere with teary voices calling out his name. Blessen and Prince, two students who escaped the accident with minor injuries, recounted how Vishnu had cautioned the driver to reduce the speed.
Blessen, a close friend of deceased student Emmanuel, said that the latter was the life of their class, always cracking jokes and friendly with everyone. “He will be missed a lot,” Blessen said.
Other students who survived the accident came to the school in the afternoon. They gathered in the privacy of the school staff room adjacent to the quadrangle where the bodies were laid out. They could be seen trying to get a last look of their friends from within the staff room as crowds thronged outside. Many of them had bandages on their faces and arm slings, serving as reminders of the tragedy they had narrowly survived.
Chithira, mother of a Class 5 student at the school, said that her son has been watching the news on TV ever since he learned about the accident. “My son used to take the same bus as Elna to school. He was friends with her younger brother. It is difficult for us to believe that someone we used to see and talk to every day is no more,” she said.
The bodies were kept at the school for only a little more than an hour, making it difficult for the large crowds that flowed into the school to get a proper last look of their beloved friends. The limited time made people rush to see the bodies, and caused some difficulties for the police and the school authorities regulating the crowd. People had to be moved aside with passionate pleas from the school authorities. Even the teachers who had been waiting at the school since morning were hardly able to get a glimpse of the bodies.
All six bodies were taken from the school by 4.15 pm. The last rites for four of the deceased is to take place on Thursday evening.