Married for 15 yrs, Indian couple dies two weeks apart after Dubai accident
dubai — Happily married for 15 years, the lives of an Indian couple touring Dubai came to a tragic end after the vehicle they were travelling in collided with a truck.
While the accident killed the husband on the spot, his wife succumbed to heavy head injuries two weeks later, in an air ambulance.
The Indian tourist couple, Dinesh Kawad, 39, and Neetu Jain Kawad, 38, passengers of the minivan that was on its way to a desert safari, died 13 days apart from each other. The accident, which happened on January 22, claimed the lives of three tourists and the minibus driver.
Dinesh, who was seated in the front passenger seat, died on the spot with the 23-year-old Pakistani driver, while his wife Neetu died mid-air in an air ambulance that was on its way to India on February 5. Another tourist in the minibus, an Italian woman, is also said to have succumbed to injuries after the accident.
The Indian couple had two children, a nine-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son who are currently in India with their grandparents.
While Dinesh’s body was repatriated back to his hometown in Bellary, Karnataka, immediately after his death, Neetu was admitted to Rashid Hospital where she fought for her life for 13 days. Her funeral took place on Tuesday at 3pm in Bellary.
“A set of aged parents have lost their only son, and two children have lost their parents. As a community, this incident has really shocked us. Everything that happened in a matter of seconds has turned their families’ lives upside down,” said Rakesh Bohara, general secretary of the Rajasthan Business and Professional Group (RBPG). Bohara added: “Dinesh’s father is 70 years old. The children are too young to take care of themselves. The couple were happily married for 15 years.”
Bohara, along with the group’s chairman Kesar Kothari, have been instrumental in helping the family.
Neetu had suffered severe head trauma and was allegedly pronounced brain dead on arrival at the hospital immediately after the accident. Her brother, cousins and brother-in-law (Dinesh’s brother) immediately flew to Dubai, and after almost 10 days of waiting for her condition to improve, decided to transfer her to the Brains Neuro Spine Centre in Bengaluru, India.
“The family procured a discharge summary from Rashid Hospital, a no-objection letter from the police stating that she can fly, and a letter from Brains Neuro Spine Centre claiming responsibility for her treatment,” said Bohara. The air ambulance took off at 2.30pm on Monday, but Neetu passed away mid-air.
“It is said that she was fine during take-off and the first hour of the journey (she was still on a ventilator), but I assume that the air pressure was too much for her, and she could’ve died an hour or two within take off,” he adds. Community members in Dubai stepped in to help the family after the tragedy. Bohara said: “We are not related to them in anyway. The word about the accident and the couple’s condition was sent around in a few community WhatsApp groups. When we heard of the scale of the tragedy, we just had to help.”
Praveen Shetty, owner of Fortune Group of Hotels, provided free accommodation for Dinesh and Neetu’s family members who came to attend to her and get Dinesh’s body repatriated. He said: “Rakesh is a good friend of mine, and when the family needed help, I suggested that they stay in my hotel. Their loss is very unfortunate.”
Brigadier Saeed Hamad bin Sulaiman, director of Al Rashidiya Police Station, said that the accident had been caused due to negligence, speeding and not leaving enough space between the vehicles.