UNITED IN GRIEF

UK communities stand in solidarity with region that's home from home

- BY SIMON MURPHY

COMMUNITIES in Britain many with close links to the Indian state of Gujarat - offered prayers to the families of crash victims last night.

One woman with wider family in the region said she was waiting to hear if she knew anyone involved.

Sonal Hirani said she had flown the Ahmedabad to Gatwick route many times, so the tragedy struck close to home.

With the victims at the front of her mind, she said: "I know what steps they took in the airport. I know what they would have seen at the airport. I know how they would have got on the plane.

"I can literally imagine every step of the way and the take-off. I know what I would have been doing in that plane." And she admitted: "Honestly... it feels like all of the words we are using are just inadequate."

As a poignant image emerged of hundreds of people holding candles at a prayer ceremony in the Indian city of Patna, in the state of Bihar, the Gujarati Arya Association London said it stood in solidarity with the Indian community around the world.