A massive crowd of morning commuters stampeded on the stairwell of a narrow footbridge linking two railway stations in Mumbai on September 29, 2017, leaving at least 22 people dead and more than 30 injured as onlookers watched victims stumbling, falling and piling up along the railings, officials said.
The tragedy took place around 10.30 a.m. when the overbridge, linking Elphinstone Road and Parel suburban stations, became overcrowded with people taking shelter from a heavy downpour. The bridge is used by lakhs of people to commute to the commercial area with high-end corporate and media offices, a police official said.
People were trapped on the stairs and the decades-old bridge, crammed so tight in the narrow space that several suffocated to death. As those on the platform below watched helplessly, many people attempted to escape by climbing over the railing. Many were seen trying desperately to stay upright in the onslaught of tumbling humanity.
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Crowds of commuters are seen moving along the Elphinstone Road railway station foot overbridge around the time of a stampede, in Mumbai on September 29, 2017, in this still image taken from social media video.
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Passengers caught in a stampede at the Elphinstone railway station’s foot overbridge in Mumbai on September 29, 2017.
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A slipper of an injured commuter is seen stuck on the railing of a foot overbridge where a stampede took place at Mumbai’s Elphinstone Road railway station stampede on September 29, 2017.
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Workers clean the Elphinstone Rd railway bridge, while fire brigade personnel reach at the station.
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Relatives of the Elphinstone Road railway station stampede victims near the mortuary of a hospital in Mumbai on September 29, 2017.
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Commuters stand under a foot overbridge where a stampede took place at Elphinstone Road railway station in Mumbai on September 29, 2017.
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Relatives check for the names of those injured in the Elphinstone Road railway station stampede, at a hospital in Mumbai on September 29, 2017.
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Commuters exit the foot overbridge at Elphinstone Road railway station, on which a stampede killed at least 22.
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Commuters at the foot overbridge in Mumbai’s Elphinstone Road railway station where a stampede took place on September 29, 2017.
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Commuters protest near the foot overbridge in Mumbai’s Elphinstone Road railway station where a stampede took place on September 29, 2017.
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Candles are lit at the Elphinstone Bridge railway station foot overbridge in Mumbai on September 29, 2017 in memory of the stampede victims.
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Candles are lit at the Elphinstone Bridge railway station foot overbridge in Mumbai on September 29, 2017 in memory of the stampede victims.