Trapped in lift for 42 hours, Kerala man pens farewell letter to wife, sons
Thiruvananthapuram: Ravindran Nair, a 59-year-old Communist Party of India (CPI) leader from Thirumala, endured a harrowing 42-hour ordeal after getting trapped in a malfunctioning lift at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College, which has drawn attention to the vulnerabilities and failures within the hospital's infrastructure.
The incident occurred from noon on Saturday, July 13, to the early hours of Monday, July 15, when Ravindran had visited the Medical College for a consultation regarding his back pain. He was accompanied by his wife, Sreelekha, who works as a cashier at the hospital, however, when the doctor asked for the blood test reports, Ravindran decided to fetch them from home himself. Upon returning to the hospital, he entered the defunct lift, which jammed mid-air.
Ravindran's repeated cries for help got no response and his attempts to contact emergency numbers also failed as his phone was out of coverage inside the lift. The senior leader managed to survive by finding a steady air supply and a cool corner within the lift, enduring the physical discomforts and emotional distress of his entrapment.
In a poignant moment, believing he might not survive, Ravindran wrote a farewell note to his wife and sons, urging his sons to strive for greater heights and reminding Sreelekha to publish her poems.
His ordeal ended on Monday morning, when a hospital staff member, Jayanandan, heard his cries and helped him out of the lift. Ravindran, physically exhausted and mentally strained, immediately sought water and tea, after his rescue.
Ravindran's story took on a deeper resonance as he learned about Joy, a sanitation worker, who was drowned in a canal in Thiruvananthapuram, and Arjun, a truck driver trapped under a mudslide in Karnataka. Reflecting on these parallel tragedies, Ravindran expressed his gratitude for his survival while mourning those who were not as fortunate.
Following his rescue, Ravindran received visits from several dignitaries, including the state secretary of the CPI and Health Minister Veena George, to whom he suggested the establishment of a control room for handling such emergencies.
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US VP JD Vance says Lebanon not part of ceasefire, calls it ‘misunderstanding’
Budapest/Washington: US Vice President J D Vance has said that Lebanon was never included in the ceasefire understanding with Iran, describing the confusion as a “legitimate misunderstanding”.
Speaking to reporters before departing from Hungary, Vance said, “I think the Iranians thought that the ceasefire included Lebanon and it just didn’t. We never made that promise.”
He stressed that the United States had not included Lebanon in the scope of the ceasefire at any stage.
His remarks come amid continued Israeli strikes in Lebanon, where more than 200 people were reported killed, even as ceasefire talks between Iran and the US move forward.
Vance said Israel had “offered … to check themselves a little bit in Lebanon because they want to make sure that our negotiation is successful”.
He warned that if Iran allows the situation in Lebanon to affect the negotiations, it could derail the talks.
“If Iran wants to let this negotiation fall apart in a conflict where they were getting hammered over Lebanon, which has nothing to do with them and which the United States never once said was part of the ceasefire, that’s ultimately their choice,” he said.
