So, for all who were waiting to here from me after the Mumbai floods, here's my story..
I too, just like everybody else, had always heard & seen about devastations in floods, earthquakes, tsunami, epidemics, blasts..but this time I was privileged & blessed enough to experience one such devastating flood & then LIVE to tell this tale!
My regular office hours is from 1:30 pm-10pm. & That day, that torrential & windy rainfall exactly coincided with the high tide (Please pool in your Geography!) in the sea between 2pm-4pm.
My boss, an extreme hypocrite, left office..When I called him up at 6, he had no option but to let me leave!
Then began my ordeal..the struggle for existence!
The Patni bus, which runs almost like an international flight takes me 45 mins usually from office to my place. That day,the rains had already rendered the roads & all other structures invisible upto almost 3 feet if not more...In between, an angry mob banged the door of the bus & threatened to puncture our tyre if not allowed to get inside..(as the trains, which is the lifeline of the city had already been suspended & buses too were running with difficulty owing to awful road conditions). We, the employees inside the bus, had then no option but to let them in..This felt almost like a hijack...
Finally in 2 & 1/2 hrs, I reached a place at least 5 kms or a little furthur from my place, where I had to get down.
Amidst heavy traffic, frantic crowd, muddy lanes & busy highways, when I reached a place 15 mins from my place (under normal conditions) & thought would somehow grope my way in the dark & reach my hostel in another 1/2 an hour.. But I had yet to witness & experience the
flood..
I was now all alone..It was pitch dark, water all around up to the chest, stranded vehicles, people struggling their way through & me stumbling over every rock & stone..It was 10:30 pm..I walked for another half an hour, & had to enter my colony called Tilaknagar, my hostel was still 12-13 mins far from me (under normal conditions)..Somebody, on my way had already warned that the water level is up to that of my neck or even higher...
He was a tall man, so I sheepishly asked him " Up to your neck??" He smiled & replied back "No, up to your neck!". I still sighed a relief! But being a solitary soul in this city,I had it in mind that I had to reach my hostel somehow coz owing to these conditions, I couldn't have now gone to anybody else's place & nobody had anticipated this severity ever.. Veterans in that area had never seen it before..!
I just took a turn towards tilaknagar & guess what.. The enormous & forceful ('mighty' is the word to describe them) water waves threw my down completely & I was flowing along.. I didn't know whom to recall last..;-)
In the flick of a second, I felt a rescuing force vertically upward & I could breathe outside water! He was a god's messenger, 6'2" in height & I must say, quite well-built..he pulled me by my sleeve alone!
In the meantime,I saw 2 females floating towards me who had attempted to go a little further.
I then was very sure that I wudn't reach hostel that night..Well, night-stand!!..;-) but where???
There's a Shoppers' Stop closeby, which we took another 15 mins to reach, wading through neck-deep water..& Finally we sought rescue at the 5 visible steps of shoppers' stop, 2 of which drowned over the night..Since I was already wet from head to toe, my mobile & every bit of item in my handbag was afloat..I had nothing to protect from water..Networks were jammed, mobiles were not working & no force on earth could improve our situation. I placed myself comfortably & watched people wading through water destined to other places, which were more viable. A Maruti 800 car got completely submerged over the night & only the roof was visible. Over the night, other people going towards Tilaknagar had to take refuge here..& They had no option but to enjoy my company..:-)
The fun began now..!
Since cars were submerged, owing to pressures & censors headlights started blinking..(only source of light at that time).
On my way, I had rested my hand on a Tata Indica for a few minutes & it floated away! I felt so strong that I could move the car with one hand!
There was a female who started crying that her parents would be awake all night. I rebuked & said "That's why I sent across wrong messages to my parents last evening. It's already raining enough :-)"
There was another female who said "I'll call my brother, he'll take me from here. I can't sit here all night". I looked at her with the corner of my eye & thought to myself, "If he can rescue us tonight, I'll tie him rakhi too! (which I've never done in my life so far & don't intend to do so ever)"
Then came a group of 4 rowdy but energetic boys who stood on top of the Maruti car & began performing 'Bhangra'..& dived into the pool of water in turns & competed for their swimming skills..! Ohh..What a sight it was..! Though others were complaining a lot, I was enjoying that thoroughly..:-)
Then came a couple..As is the case, the female was a namby-pamby type & couldn't bear the cold..(the guy had to leave his bike on some distant highway). I told her "why did u come so late, the 'chaay-wala' just left!"
I also took a nap in that horrible condition! (You ought to commend my anytime-anywhere sleeping abilities)
By 6 in the morning, our back & limbs were giving up, the intensity of rain was much less, the maruti's windows were visible & everybody gathered guts unanimously to make a move towards Tilaknagar.. Implementing Ringa-Ringa roses & 'kadam-kadam badhaye ja' fully, we waded through the water inch by inch..Though I was numb already, I was shivering involuntarily in the ice-cold water ,still up to a level little lower than the neck.. those relatively weak females held my arms so tight that they are still aching (apart from the war I had waged against water last night!). The water undercurrents still tended to draw us apart..but we realised very well that 'United we stand, divided we fall'..& I kept telling my cycling basics to them.."Keep peddling. Move your legs up & forward. Dont stand still". In 1 & 1/2 hrs, (that usual 12 mins distance), I reached my hostel & found the ground floor submerged (Thankfully only the office & mess lies there)! The mess workers did a yeoman's job by supplying us food for both meals even in that crisis. They had shifted parts of their apparatus to 1st floor.
My feet's flesh was looking like rotten flesh..! I somehow gathered strength to clean myself & A few girls who hadn't moved last day said "Go, hurry up & change..U'll catch cold!" Was anything remaining!..:-)
But the stories that I heard since last 2 days were terrifying..
A female stayed in a submerged train all night, with her legs in water!(Good sauna..!)
Another woman had already sought forgiveness from all her near & dear ones for this lifetime, when she saw Tata Sumos flowing, buffaloes flowing, Walls breaking, trees uprooting & people already dying! As is evident, ground floors of many houses were afloat..Selfishly though, I felt lucky not to have my house there!
People walked down from one end of Bombay to the other for hours together. The highest I've heard so far is 6 hours! (Not to forget, they were walking in water!)
Many people stayed back in their offices for that night & somehow made it the next day morning. Some people went on their way to heaven through manholes underground & other such things as is common in the news.
While sitting at those steps outside Shoppers' stop all night, the person I was missing most is Barkha Dutt! I thought if she could withstand the firing at Kargil, she could withstand this too. I'll never be as brave as her but I really feel like sending this mail to her too..(barkha.dutt@ndtv.com
??? ;-))
Since there was no electricity for 2 days, everyone's mobile's battery discharged & I still had no communication with my parents or even my sister, who also survived the floods in this city & whose status, was worrying me beyond description. (I hope none of you will ask me, why didn't you go to a telephone booth!). It took 36 hrs for the water to subside completely & it'll take a couple of days more for normal functioning of this city.
But I appreciate the energy & attitude of the people of the Business capital wherein, the transport (road & rail) were restored immediately after the water level subsided; people started moving to offices or their respective destinations in flocks, as if nothing had happened. Today, in my office, people are hardly wasting time discussing the tragedy. Everybody passes a smile meaning "good to see u back!"
I had tried sending messages through other people & finally I could talk to my parents with a wonderful piece of lie that I had reached my hostel in time & without much hassle! What's the whole point in taking their sleep away, after all I'm an adult! now!
By the way, My cell phone is working fine but the display's spoilt, cant see anything on the screen so could receive calls.. Now, it is with Nokia priority dealer, maybe for the next one week.
For the very short time, that I had charged the battery from an external source yesterday & had the phone with me, I received calls from people whom I was hearing from, for the 1st or 2nd time after birth! It really feels good when people seem so concerned about you & One of the unfortunate calls were from my Boss, who had called up to check if I'm alive so that he could employ an alternative resource immediately for my 'single resource, mission critical project' in case I were...!
Anyway, the experience was tough but worth it & my belief that the number of good people in this world are higher got affirmed.
I too, just like everybody else, had always heard & seen about devastations in floods, earthquakes, tsunami, epidemics, blasts..but this time I was privileged & blessed enough to experience one such devastating flood & then LIVE to tell this tale!
My regular office hours is from 1:30 pm-10pm. & That day, that torrential & windy rainfall exactly coincided with the high tide (Please pool in your Geography!) in the sea between 2pm-4pm.
My boss, an extreme hypocrite, left office..When I called him up at 6, he had no option but to let me leave!
Then began my ordeal..the struggle for existence!
The Patni bus, which runs almost like an international flight takes me 45 mins usually from office to my place. That day,the rains had already rendered the roads & all other structures invisible upto almost 3 feet if not more...In between, an angry mob banged the door of the bus & threatened to puncture our tyre if not allowed to get inside..(as the trains, which is the lifeline of the city had already been suspended & buses too were running with difficulty owing to awful road conditions). We, the employees inside the bus, had then no option but to let them in..This felt almost like a hijack...
Finally in 2 & 1/2 hrs, I reached a place at least 5 kms or a little furthur from my place, where I had to get down.
Amidst heavy traffic, frantic crowd, muddy lanes & busy highways, when I reached a place 15 mins from my place (under normal conditions) & thought would somehow grope my way in the dark & reach my hostel in another 1/2 an hour.. But I had yet to witness & experience the
flood..
I was now all alone..It was pitch dark, water all around up to the chest, stranded vehicles, people struggling their way through & me stumbling over every rock & stone..It was 10:30 pm..I walked for another half an hour, & had to enter my colony called Tilaknagar, my hostel was still 12-13 mins far from me (under normal conditions)..Somebody, on my way had already warned that the water level is up to that of my neck or even higher...
He was a tall man, so I sheepishly asked him " Up to your neck??" He smiled & replied back "No, up to your neck!". I still sighed a relief! But being a solitary soul in this city,I had it in mind that I had to reach my hostel somehow coz owing to these conditions, I couldn't have now gone to anybody else's place & nobody had anticipated this severity ever.. Veterans in that area had never seen it before..!
I just took a turn towards tilaknagar & guess what.. The enormous & forceful ('mighty' is the word to describe them) water waves threw my down completely & I was flowing along.. I didn't know whom to recall last..;-)
In the flick of a second, I felt a rescuing force vertically upward & I could breathe outside water! He was a god's messenger, 6'2" in height & I must say, quite well-built..he pulled me by my sleeve alone!
In the meantime,I saw 2 females floating towards me who had attempted to go a little further.
I then was very sure that I wudn't reach hostel that night..Well, night-stand!!..;-) but where???
There's a Shoppers' Stop closeby, which we took another 15 mins to reach, wading through neck-deep water..& Finally we sought rescue at the 5 visible steps of shoppers' stop, 2 of which drowned over the night..Since I was already wet from head to toe, my mobile & every bit of item in my handbag was afloat..I had nothing to protect from water..Networks were jammed, mobiles were not working & no force on earth could improve our situation. I placed myself comfortably & watched people wading through water destined to other places, which were more viable. A Maruti 800 car got completely submerged over the night & only the roof was visible. Over the night, other people going towards Tilaknagar had to take refuge here..& They had no option but to enjoy my company..:-)
The fun began now..!
Since cars were submerged, owing to pressures & censors headlights started blinking..(only source of light at that time).
On my way, I had rested my hand on a Tata Indica for a few minutes & it floated away! I felt so strong that I could move the car with one hand!
There was a female who started crying that her parents would be awake all night. I rebuked & said "That's why I sent across wrong messages to my parents last evening. It's already raining enough :-)"
There was another female who said "I'll call my brother, he'll take me from here. I can't sit here all night". I looked at her with the corner of my eye & thought to myself, "If he can rescue us tonight, I'll tie him rakhi too! (which I've never done in my life so far & don't intend to do so ever)"
Then came a group of 4 rowdy but energetic boys who stood on top of the Maruti car & began performing 'Bhangra'..& dived into the pool of water in turns & competed for their swimming skills..! Ohh..What a sight it was..! Though others were complaining a lot, I was enjoying that thoroughly..:-)
Then came a couple..As is the case, the female was a namby-pamby type & couldn't bear the cold..(the guy had to leave his bike on some distant highway). I told her "why did u come so late, the 'chaay-wala' just left!"
I also took a nap in that horrible condition! (You ought to commend my anytime-anywhere sleeping abilities)
By 6 in the morning, our back & limbs were giving up, the intensity of rain was much less, the maruti's windows were visible & everybody gathered guts unanimously to make a move towards Tilaknagar.. Implementing Ringa-Ringa roses & 'kadam-kadam badhaye ja' fully, we waded through the water inch by inch..Though I was numb already, I was shivering involuntarily in the ice-cold water ,still up to a level little lower than the neck.. those relatively weak females held my arms so tight that they are still aching (apart from the war I had waged against water last night!). The water undercurrents still tended to draw us apart..but we realised very well that 'United we stand, divided we fall'..& I kept telling my cycling basics to them.."Keep peddling. Move your legs up & forward. Dont stand still". In 1 & 1/2 hrs, (that usual 12 mins distance), I reached my hostel & found the ground floor submerged (Thankfully only the office & mess lies there)! The mess workers did a yeoman's job by supplying us food for both meals even in that crisis. They had shifted parts of their apparatus to 1st floor.
My feet's flesh was looking like rotten flesh..! I somehow gathered strength to clean myself & A few girls who hadn't moved last day said "Go, hurry up & change..U'll catch cold!" Was anything remaining!..:-)
But the stories that I heard since last 2 days were terrifying..
A female stayed in a submerged train all night, with her legs in water!(Good sauna..!)
Another woman had already sought forgiveness from all her near & dear ones for this lifetime, when she saw Tata Sumos flowing, buffaloes flowing, Walls breaking, trees uprooting & people already dying! As is evident, ground floors of many houses were afloat..Selfishly though, I felt lucky not to have my house there!
People walked down from one end of Bombay to the other for hours together. The highest I've heard so far is 6 hours! (Not to forget, they were walking in water!)
Many people stayed back in their offices for that night & somehow made it the next day morning. Some people went on their way to heaven through manholes underground & other such things as is common in the news.
While sitting at those steps outside Shoppers' stop all night, the person I was missing most is Barkha Dutt! I thought if she could withstand the firing at Kargil, she could withstand this too. I'll never be as brave as her but I really feel like sending this mail to her too..(barkha.dutt@ndtv.com
??? ;-))
Since there was no electricity for 2 days, everyone's mobile's battery discharged & I still had no communication with my parents or even my sister, who also survived the floods in this city & whose status, was worrying me beyond description. (I hope none of you will ask me, why didn't you go to a telephone booth!). It took 36 hrs for the water to subside completely & it'll take a couple of days more for normal functioning of this city.
But I appreciate the energy & attitude of the people of the Business capital wherein, the transport (road & rail) were restored immediately after the water level subsided; people started moving to offices or their respective destinations in flocks, as if nothing had happened. Today, in my office, people are hardly wasting time discussing the tragedy. Everybody passes a smile meaning "good to see u back!"
I had tried sending messages through other people & finally I could talk to my parents with a wonderful piece of lie that I had reached my hostel in time & without much hassle! What's the whole point in taking their sleep away, after all I'm an adult! now!
By the way, My cell phone is working fine but the display's spoilt, cant see anything on the screen so could receive calls.. Now, it is with Nokia priority dealer, maybe for the next one week.
For the very short time, that I had charged the battery from an external source yesterday & had the phone with me, I received calls from people whom I was hearing from, for the 1st or 2nd time after birth! It really feels good when people seem so concerned about you & One of the unfortunate calls were from my Boss, who had called up to check if I'm alive so that he could employ an alternative resource immediately for my 'single resource, mission critical project' in case I were...!
Anyway, the experience was tough but worth it & my belief that the number of good people in this world are higher got affirmed.
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