"Barricades Were Pushed Down, Almost Got Crushed": 19-Year-Old Recounts Bengaluru Stampede Horror

At least 11 people died and 50 were injured in a stampede outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday, as thousands gathered to celebrate Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) IPL victory. One fan, who narrowly escaped what he described as a "near-death experience", shared his harrowing ordeal on Reddit. The 19-year-old said he was fortunate to escape, thanks to the help of a stranger who pulled him and his friend up and took them away from the crowd. "This is what went down today at the P3 Annex gate (near gates 18 and 19)," the user wrote in the post. 

"Me and my friend (both 19M) were walking down Cubbon Park Road toward the stadium. The whole road was chaos. People were yelling about tickets, asking each other where to get them. Through word of mouth, we all heard that Ticketgenie was the app for buying tickets. But with jammers being placed, no one near the stadium could book anything," he shared. 

The teen said that he and his friend tried downloading the app, but the site crashed within minutes. "People were roaming around trying to find network while cars and bikes were just stuck in place. Then suddenly, the crowd noticed that a single door in the big gate had opened. And y'all know how it goes-when people see a small chance, they rush. And that's what happened. That one-person entry point created a bottleneck, and people lost their minds," he wrote, adding that this is where the situation got dangerous. 

Near Death experience Today at Chinnaswamy (my pov in story mode)
byu/indian_ni--a25 inipl

The Redditor shared that as people started scrambling to get in, there was no space to move. "People started jumping down to the road to try and get closer to the gate," he recalled.

Then suddenly, someone pushed the barricade down, right opposite the gate, and the entry was wide open. "Everyone lost it. The crowd rushed the gate. No ticket checks. Just madness," the original poster said, adding that this is when the situation "became a stampede". 

"If you were lucky enough to stay standing and move forward, you were okay. If not... you were crushed. Oh god and the women screaming made it even scary, the guys around them tried to protect them, but everything felt pointless. I saw all of this right in front of my eyes. I held my friend's hand tightly and just marched forward. The force from behind was insane. We had nothing to hold on to except each other," he recounted. 

The 19-year-old also recalled the horror of seeing two to three injured people lying on the road. "Everything was happening so fast, and it was too much to take in," he said. 

Also read | RCB Management To Be Probed Over Social Media Post Hours Before Stampede

"Then people from the opposite direction started pushing into our lane. My friend's Nike shoe fell off, and because the fallen barricade had grills, our legs were getting stuck in them. And then - worst moment - we lost balance. My friend fell, and because I was holding his hand, I got pulled down too. I legit thought this is it Imma be gone," the Redditor wrote. 

Then, "Out of nowhere, a godsent man heard me. He turned back, said "Ay kayi kodo!" (bro give me your hand), pulled me up and threw my arm over his shoulder. Because of him, I could pull my friend up too. If he wasn't there... we would've been posters tomorrow. We didn't even wait-we ran the opposite way, holding hands like a chain. Me, my friend and the guy who helped us. People were screaming to go this way or that way, but we ignored them and just got the hell out," he recounted. 

The 19-year-old said that the whole incident has given him trauma. "I don't think I'll ever attend a mass event the same way again," he wrote. 

Concluding his post, he thanked the man who saved him and his friend. "I don't know your name, but I hope God blesses you forever. You literally saved two lives today. Thank you," he said.