Although the skies over Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district were gloomy on Wednesday (May 14), it was a usual day for Nanhe Mian of Bamiyana village.
He was on his way to a local wedding hall to collect some items. But the ordinary nature of the day ended for him soon after. A storm had already started to brew. At that time, Nanhe was standing near a tin shade. Suddenly, the storm intensified.
Lifted by the storm
Nanhe heard that the tin shade was creaking due to the intensifying storm and thought that if he did not hold on to it, it would be blown away by the storm. So, he tightly grabbed onto a rope tied to the tin shade.
- Srikanth Bhalaji (@SBhalaji94)But the wind was stronger than he expected. Moments later, there was a severe gust, and before he could react, Nanhe found himself flung high in the air along with the tin shade. Instinctively, he let go of the rope.
The wind flung him 50 feet through the air, before it weakened, and he landed in an adjacent field. Although he suffered two fractures and multiple injuries, fortunately, Nanhe survived the freak accident and is currently recovering in a hospital.
When the video looked unreal
Although a section of social media users suspected that the viral video was generated using artificial intelligence, for Nanhe, an e-rickshaw driver, it is all too real, with a fractured arm and leg, along with injuries on his head and back.
Nanhe, around 50 years old, said that he had gone to a wedding hall to collect some items when the storm intensified.
"The wind was so strong that the tin shed started making loud noises. I thought if I did not hold onto it, it would be blown away in the storm. So, I immediately grabbed a rope tied to the shed," he said.
"Then a very strong gust came and lifted both the shed and me into the air. I was carried nearly 50 feet into the air before the storm weakened and I fell to the ground," he said. Nanhe lives with his wife and their five children.
89 dead in storm
Bareilly Police said in a statement that Nahne was standing inside the wedding hall in Bamiyana when strong winds and rain tore the tin roof of the structure.
According to the Uttar Pradesh government, at least 89 people were killed and around 50 were injured in storm and rain-related incidents across the state on Wednesday.
Several animals were also killed, and houses and shops were damaged in many places.
In Bareilly, four people were killed between 8.30 am and 11.30 pm on Wednesday, nine animals perished, and around 30 houses suffered heavy damage, officials said.
(With agency inputs)