An Indian bus driver may have become the first “known” person in recorded history to be killed in a meteorite strike. The man reportedly died after being hit by splinters “from exploding space rock” on Saturday, February 6, 2016, at a private engineering college in the northern Tamil Nadu state of India.
The chief minister of Tamil Nadu state, J. Jayalalithaa, confirmed on Sunday that Kamaraj, a 40-year-old bus driver with the Bharathidasan Engineering College, a private institution at K. Pantharappalli village (K.Bandarappalli) near Natrampalli, in the Vellore district, was injured seriously on Saturday after he was struck by splinters from a falling meteorite or “space rock” as he stood near a building at the college premises.
According to a report by the Hindu , the man was drinking or fetching water at a tank on the college premises after midnight when the meteorite strike occurred.
Witnesses said they saw a glowing object falling from the sky and then a “deafening” explosion. The explosion, according to the NDTV , caused a crater and shattered the windows of a college building (see surveillance camera footage below) and buses parked nearby.
The water tank was also broken by the explosion, the Hindu reports.
But a preliminary report by the local police denied claims that the incident was caused by a meteorite strike. According to the report, the “explosion” was caused by gelignite — (blasting) gelatin stick — used for construction work at the school but left on the ground carelessly, according to the New Indian Express .
The police report went on say that the gelatin sticks were detonated inadvertently by a gardener burning rubbish on the school premises.
But Chief Minister Jayalalithaa confirmed later that investigating authorities recovered a piece of meteorite from the scene of the incident. Forensic experts also found no evidence of a blast caused by man-made explosives.
According to the statement from the minister’s office, “A mishap occurred yesterday when a meteorite fell in the campus of a private engineering college in Vellore district’s K Pantharappalli village.”
According to a follow-up statement by the local police after a bomb detection and disposal team visited the site, “We can [now] rule out the possibility of any terror angle or sabotage. Not a single ingredient pertaining to any kind of explosive was found at the site. We suspect it to be a meteorite fall.”
Bus driver becomes first human in history to be ‘killed by a meteorite’ #India #meteorite https://t.co/dhyyA54f84 pic.twitter.com/NutxMMjzER
— Daily Express (@Daily_Express) February 8, 2016
Tamil Nadu Man Killed By ‘Meteorite’ May Be First In 200 Years https://t.co/2FZsJ3wAuZ
— NDTV News feed (@ndtvfeed) February 8, 2016
Indian man could be the first person to be killed by a meteorite in recorded history https://t.co/HfPPvPv7kc
— ppcblog (@ppcblog) February 8, 2016
The bus driver was rushed to the nearby Vaniyambadi Government Hospital but died on the way, according to the New Indian Express . A senior police officer told the Hindu that three other people suffered minor injuries in the same incident.
According to a statement by the chief minister, “I have ordered the Vellore district administration and hospital officials to provide them [injured victims] best treatment.”
Hot off the press — The Space Report is out! https://t.co/ldBaWfe8qU
— Jason Major (@JPMajor) February 7, 2016
for him death come from sky , how a meteorite could hit in Tamilnadu , which is neither in north or south pole – https://t.co/trFuc4cYYQ
— Partha (@Psenapati) February 7, 2016
Meteorite explosion claims life of bus driver, injures three in Tamil Nadu https://t.co/xN0lz5iUf7 pic.twitter.com/4u4uY07ikJ
— Dunya News (@DunyaNews) February 8, 2016
The chief minister also announced compensation worth about $1,450 for the family of the victim, according to NDTV .
A similar incident was reported at Alangayam, also in the Vellore district, late last month. A scientist with the National Physical Laboratory who was working at a site nearby rushed to Alangayam after villagers reported sighting a bright object falling from the sky and impacting the ground.
Loud #meteorite kills one and injures 3 on campus in #India https://t.co/U0J4UZw4aq via @Strange_Sounds pic.twitter.com/IXOUUqp5tW
— Strange Sounds (@Strange_Sounds) February 7, 2016
“The scientist was camping nearby and rushed to the college soon after hearing the news of the blast. We are convinced that it is a meteorite that fell with high velocity. In the earlier incident, local people remember having seen an object falling from the sky in the field,” an official told the Hindu .
[Image via Shutterstock]
