Chennai Floods
Bengaluru, 04 December 2015
The rain seems to have abated and the flood waters have started receding. People are now able to move around a bit. They are able to move to places which have power supply and are able to charge their mobile phones, pick up some essentials like bread and drinking water and make contact with their friends and families.
Bengaluru, 04 December 2015
I managed
to establish contact with a couple of friends in Chennai and what they told me
is not very encouraging.
The rain seems to have abated and the flood waters have started receding. People are now able to move around a bit. They are able to move to places which have power supply and are able to charge their mobile phones, pick up some essentials like bread and drinking water and make contact with their friends and families.
For the
last three days they were without power, drinking water, even water for
cleaning and toilet use. They were not even able to move out of their houses.
They were not able to communicate with the outside world because power supply
was cut, cell phone towers were down and nothing was functioning. In many areas
the entire ground floors were under water. They tell me that the flood waters
started gushing in all of a sudden and in a matter of less than an hour they
found themselves neck deep in water. They only just had time to evacuate to
upper floors. Many families are holed up in some upper floor in just the
clothes they were wearing.
I hear
that power is being restored in phases but there are many areas which are still
dark. There is no communication from my friends and relatives in those areas
and their phones are not reachable. I can only hope and pray that everyone is
safe. I read somewhere that many people were forced to leave their pets behind
because they could not be accommodated in the boats and rescue vehicles. I
cannot believe this but I hope these poor animals are also safe.
When the
flood waters recede fully and they are able to move back into their homes, they
will know the full extent of the damage caused by this unexpected calamity.
They are afraid that nothing will be salvageable. Household equipment,
furniture, electronic gadgets, books, clothes, stocks of rations, everything
would have been destroyed or damaged beyond repair. The buildings themselves
have to be checked for damages to the structures and electrical wiring. Then
will start the painful process of cleaning up and assessing the total loss to
each and every structure and each and every family.
The fate
of businesses is similar. Showrooms, offices and other business establishments
have been inundated. Stocks have been washed away or irreparably damaged. They
have to re-build from scratch. Small businessmen and tradesmen will be most
badly affected. Those whose properties are not insured will not be able to
recover anything.
In all
this tragedy, what stood out bright and shining was the effort put in by the
armed forces, para-military forces, small groups of volunteers and most of all
the common citizens who worked selflessly to save many people and bring them to
safety. Many groups from nearby cities are working tirelessly to gather and
rush supplies of essential goods like packaged drinking water, bread, biscuits,
dry chapaties, battery packs, etc. to Chennai. They are co-ordinating with
groups stationed in Chennai to collect and distribute these essentials.
Software professionals are coming out with innovative ideas to connect with
people and guiding the rescue forces to rush help where it is required. Doctors
and nurses are working round the clock to provide medical assistance. Able bodied men and women are pitching in to help people move to safer areas.
Hotels, schools, theatres and many private establishments have thrown their
doors open to anyone who needs shelter. We salute all these noble men and
women.
I am told
that the government disaster relief machinery is up and running, though no one has
spoken up for them so far. The central government has already announced two
slabs of relief amounting to almost Rs. 2000 Crores. While this may not be
enough, at least the various agencies involved in rescue and rehabilitation
will not be starved of immediate funds to keep the momentum of the relief work
going.
The
enormity of this catastrophe is mind-boggling. We can only hope and pray that
the citizens of Chennai, known for their resilience, will get back on their
feet, slowly perhaps, but surely.
And
lastly, one particular category of people who usually come up to the front when
it is time to be seen and heard, are strangely silent this time, so far.
Perhaps prudently. Perhaps they are also working silently to help in the relief
operations. Or is there any connection to the rumours of crocodiles having
escaped from the Crocodile Park?