Uma Thomas, MLA, sustains serious injuries in fall at stadium in Kochi

Thrikkakara MLA Uma Thomas sustains severe head injuries after falling from VIP gallery at stadium event.

Thrikkakara MLA Uma Thomas sustained serious head injuries on Sunday (December 29, 2024) evening, as she reportedly fell from a height from a VIP gallery at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium, Kaloor.

A severely bleeding Ms. Thomas was rushed to a private hospital by volunteers and others. Hospital sources said that she was put on ventilator support.

She reportedly hit her head on the concrete ground in the fall from a height of approximately 15 feet Initial reports say that there was limited space in between the front row seats and the edge of the gallery that was ‘barricaded’ using a rope.

Ms. Thomas had been at the stadium to attend ‘Mridanga Naadam,’ an event which aimed at making it to the Guinness Book for the largest number of dancers (approximately 12,000 people) performing Bharatanatyam simultaneously. Minister for Culture Saji Cherian was among those present at the event.

“The incident could have been prevented if the event organisers had not placed a row of chairs on the pathway that led to the gallery. This considerably reduced the width of the pathway to less than two feet,” said Joseph Martin, correspondent of of a television channel, who was covering the event.

Moreover, a few ‘queue stands’ with retractable ribbon were relied on to act as a barricade at the edge of the gallery. Ms. Thomas seemed to walk towards the other guests, including Mr. Cherian and waved at them, following which she tried to balance herself by holding on to the ribbon/queue stand. She lost balance and fell down, he added.

Sources in GCDA that owns the international stadium said that Ms Thomas fell from a gallery that was temporarily erected by the organisers for dignitaries to watch the dance event. “All galleries that we built have steel railings and are safe,” they added.