Daijiworld Media Network - Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad, Jun 14: What began as a long-awaited family reunion during Eid al-Adha has turned into an unimaginable tragedy for the family of 37-year-old Javed, who perished along with his wife Maryam and their two young children in the Air India crash on Thursday.

Javed, a UK-based citizen, had returned to Ahmedabad for the first time in 15 years with all three of his siblings and their families to celebrate Eid with their ailing mother. “It was perfect,” said his brother Imtiaz, speaking to NDTV at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. “For the first time in 15 years, all four of us were together with our mother. Now we’ve lost four members of our family in one moment.”

The Air India flight AI 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London, crashed into a building shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, killing 241 of the 242 people on board, including Javed and his family. At least 10 more people died on the ground at the BJ Medical College complex where the plane went down.

Javed’s elderly mother, a heart patient due for surgery in two weeks, has not yet been informed of the tragedy. “We’ve told her they are in the hospital and under investigation. We can’t break the news to her yet,” said Imtiaz.

Emotionally distraught, Imtiaz shared how he spent Thursday night giving his blood sample for DNA testing and visiting multiple hospitals, hoping against hope for a mistake in the records. “We are being told the bodies are charred beyond recognition. It’s very difficult to accept. We’re waiting for the DNA report, which we’re told will come by Sunday. But how can that be done so fast for so many victims?” he questioned.

The tragedy has cast a deep pall of gloom over the family and the city as authorities continue the process of identifying remains and investigating the cause of one of India’s deadliest air disasters in recent memory.