Parachuting woman officer lands on power line

May 28, 2015 12:00 am | Updated 05:34 am IST - CHENNAI:

A young woman officer of the Indian Air Force sustained burns after she landed on high-tension power supply lines when her parachute went astray during a para-sailing training at the Air Force Station in Tambaram on Wednesday morning.

Residents noticed the officer – Flight Lieutenant Mohana Chandra – hanging from the branch of a neem tree and crying for help around 6.30 a.m. About 15 minutes later, an IAF rescue team from Tambaram station came to her help, administered first aid at the station and rushed her to Military Hospital in St. Thomas Mount.

A senior IAF officer told  The Hindu : “She was on her regular sortie when the gusty wind swept her off the campus. Her parachute went astray and came in contact with high tension wires. She is being treated now.” However, there was no official communication on the incident by the IAF.

Defence sources said Flt. Lt. Mohana and 20 others were undergoing training in para-sailing in the morning when strong winds swept her off course. (In para-sailing, a jeep pulls the participant, who has a parachute strapped at the back. The participant has to run for a distance once he or she gains enough height, the rope is removed).

Noticing her going away from the normal course, the IAF rescue team followed her and saw her hanging from the tree branch in Professor’s Colony. But before the rescue team could arrive, the officer tried to free herself, but touched the power supply cable, received a shock and then lost her consciousness. Defence sources said she is likely to be under observation at the hospital for couple of days.

Joy Mathew, a resident of Air Force Station Road, said: “The woman officer suffered a few bruises on her hands in her effort to save herself from the tree branch. But the efforts taken by the Air Force rescue team saved her and the victim was rushed to hospital in 5 minutes,” he said.

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