Edu Nandlal
Encyclopedia
Radjindernath "Edu" Nandlal (born 1963/1964 in Paramaribo
) is a retired Dutch
-Suriname
footballer
. During his career, he played for the FC Utrecht, FC Emmen
and Vitesse teams. He was one of the footballers that survived the Surinam Airways Flight PY764
air crash in Paramaribo
on June 7, 1989.
Nandlal moved from Suriname to the Netherlands in 1980 at the age of 17. His aim was to become a successful professional footballer. In Suriname, he excelled in several sports. His athletic abilities gave him some respite from the difficult times he endured at school. Due to his Hindu
background, he wasn't able to speak Dutch well. After he moved to the Netherlands, he studied and got rid of the language barrier. He became a talented footballer and was signed by FC Utrecht. Later he played for FC Emmen
and eventually Vitesse where he played until 1989.
After the 1988-89 season, he was invited by Sonny Hasnoe, the founder of the Colourful 11 to be part of the team and travel to Suriname to play in the "Boxel Kleurrijk Tournament" with three Surinamese teams. Due to his nerves during the flight, Nandlal was unable to sleep and he switched seats with Jerry Haatrecht
to be able to have a better view out of the window. The Surinam Airways Flight PY764
crashed during approach to Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport, killing 176 of the 187 onboard, making it the deadliest ever aviation disaster in Suriname's history. Among the dead were a total of 15 members of the Colourful 11 including Haatrecht. Only three of them, including Nandlal, survived.
Nandlal remembers hearing a big bang prior to the accident and recalls the plane trying to regain altitude. From that moment, he went into shock and suffered memory loss. He had been talking to security people. After this, he was placed in a car, but he stepped out and went back into the jungle. He spent five days in a hospital in Paramaribo, but is unable to remember anything of this. In a hospital back in Amsterdam
, he came back to life and realised what had happened. He suffered a partial spinal cord lesion
rendering him quadriplegic and spent 13 months in a wheelchair. As a result, he was unable to return to the pitch. He wasn't sure if he would ever be able to walk again, but with hard work, he finally succeeded.
Exactly twelve years after the accident, on June 7, 2001, he was told his five year old son was terminally ill. The boy died in his arms that day. Three months later, he divorced from his wife. He told journalist Ton van den Berg that it was then that he finally understood the impact of losing someone close as he was still in shock after the air crash. Currently Nandlal is part of the political party
Leefbaar Utrecht and has his own cleaning company. He lives with his two daughters.
Paramaribo
Paramaribo is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 250,000 people, more than half of Suriname's population...
) is a retired Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
-Suriname
Suriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
. During his career, he played for the FC Utrecht, FC Emmen
FC Emmen
FC Emmen is a Dutch football club based in Emmen, Drenthe, and currently playing in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of football in the Netherlands.-History:...
and Vitesse teams. He was one of the footballers that survived the Surinam Airways Flight PY764
Surinam Airways Flight PY764
Surinam Airways Flight 764 was an international scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in the Netherlands to Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport in Suriname on a Surinam Airways DC-8...
air crash in Paramaribo
Paramaribo
Paramaribo is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 250,000 people, more than half of Suriname's population...
on June 7, 1989.
Nandlal moved from Suriname to the Netherlands in 1980 at the age of 17. His aim was to become a successful professional footballer. In Suriname, he excelled in several sports. His athletic abilities gave him some respite from the difficult times he endured at school. Due to his Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
background, he wasn't able to speak Dutch well. After he moved to the Netherlands, he studied and got rid of the language barrier. He became a talented footballer and was signed by FC Utrecht. Later he played for FC Emmen
FC Emmen
FC Emmen is a Dutch football club based in Emmen, Drenthe, and currently playing in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of football in the Netherlands.-History:...
and eventually Vitesse where he played until 1989.
After the 1988-89 season, he was invited by Sonny Hasnoe, the founder of the Colourful 11 to be part of the team and travel to Suriname to play in the "Boxel Kleurrijk Tournament" with three Surinamese teams. Due to his nerves during the flight, Nandlal was unable to sleep and he switched seats with Jerry Haatrecht
Jerry Haatrecht
Jerry Haatrecht was a Dutch-Suriname footballer. During his career he served Cambuur Leeuwarden as well as a bunch of amateur clubs including VV Neerlandia '31. He died at the age of 28, when on June 7, 1989 he was killed in the Surinam Airways Flight PY764 air crash in Paramaribo...
to be able to have a better view out of the window. The Surinam Airways Flight PY764
Surinam Airways Flight PY764
Surinam Airways Flight 764 was an international scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in the Netherlands to Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport in Suriname on a Surinam Airways DC-8...
crashed during approach to Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport, killing 176 of the 187 onboard, making it the deadliest ever aviation disaster in Suriname's history. Among the dead were a total of 15 members of the Colourful 11 including Haatrecht. Only three of them, including Nandlal, survived.
Nandlal remembers hearing a big bang prior to the accident and recalls the plane trying to regain altitude. From that moment, he went into shock and suffered memory loss. He had been talking to security people. After this, he was placed in a car, but he stepped out and went back into the jungle. He spent five days in a hospital in Paramaribo, but is unable to remember anything of this. In a hospital back in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, he came back to life and realised what had happened. He suffered a partial spinal cord lesion
Lesion
A lesion is any abnormality in the tissue of an organism , usually caused by disease or trauma. Lesion is derived from the Latin word laesio which means injury.- Types :...
rendering him quadriplegic and spent 13 months in a wheelchair. As a result, he was unable to return to the pitch. He wasn't sure if he would ever be able to walk again, but with hard work, he finally succeeded.
Exactly twelve years after the accident, on June 7, 2001, he was told his five year old son was terminally ill. The boy died in his arms that day. Three months later, he divorced from his wife. He told journalist Ton van den Berg that it was then that he finally understood the impact of losing someone close as he was still in shock after the air crash. Currently Nandlal is part of the political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
Leefbaar Utrecht and has his own cleaning company. He lives with his two daughters.