In the emergency surgical ward of general specialty SMHS hospital here, Safoora Farooq recalls how a loud blast inside a classroom of a private institution in Pulwama turned everything around them dark.
“I have never in my life heard such a loud bang. Everything around us turned dark,” Safoora, one of many students injured in the blast, told Greater Kashmir.
Safoora’s legs are bandaged and her palms are blood-stained.
Narrating the horrible sequence of events that left more than two dozen students of class 10 injured at a coaching institution in Kakpora, Pulwama, Safoora said: “I had fallen unconscious. When I regained consciousness, I saw myself on lying ground and blood all around me. Everyone was screaming”.
Safoora’s legs and back suffered splinter injuries in the “mysterious” blast that rocked the classroom at around 2.30 pm.
Many of her classmates were admitted at the SMHS hospital for similar injuries. On Wednesday afternoon, the whole emergency surgical ward had only students on its beds.
These included Moomin Manzoor, who was writhing in pain.
Moomin was seated in the middle of the classroom and ready to get up when he heard a “loud blast”.
He said those seated in the middle and back suffered serious wounds while those on the front escaped with minor injuries.
“In a few moments following the blast, front benchers ran out of the classroom, but I and those around me could not,” he said.
“A student who was sitting next to me had his leg split into two parts. I just wanted to run when I saw that horrific scene,” he said.
The 15-year old, however, could not get up to run away as his legs and back had suffered multiple splinter injuries.
Moomin and many other students were brought to the SMHS hospital by local residents.
As their parents arrived at the hospital, they wailed frantically, searching for their children.
Some students were still calling their parents over phones (borrowed from other attendants in the hospital) to inform them of their narrow escape.
“I am alright but my leg is injured,” Faizan Ahmed said, trying to make his voice audible to his father who was seated next to him on the hospital bed.
“All my friends are here; don’t worry,” he told his father.
Medical superintendent of SMHS hospital Dr Saleem Tak said nine students were admitted there for treatment.
“They are all stable and being treated for splinter injuries,” he said.
Three of the injured were admitted to the Bone and Joints hospital, its medical superintendent Dr Abdul Rasheed Buddoo said.
“One of them has a fractured leg, while two have soft tissue injuries,” he said.
He said all the injured were stable.