'It was a horrible night'

We asked readers about how they coped with the torrential rain in Mumbai and this is what the early responses said, verbatim:

It was something arround 2.30 pm on Tuesday that we came to know about the flood. By that time water level started raising in dadar especially on senapathi bapat marg.

And we 3 colleagues decided to head towards dadar station around 2.45 in hope to board an outstation train probably to get down at kalyan. There was heavy rain followed by lightning and thunder all the way to dadar. We reached there to find a huge crowd waiting for a train. and there was absolutely no trains running for more than one hour!!!

After spending an hour we decided to call our boss who was on his car on the way to his home and he was luckily near dadar station. we 3 had went outside to the west side of dadar and my god!! it was up to chest outside the station. My other two collegues taken a brave step to go through that flooded area and myself decided to go back to the office.

And on the way to my office, it was horrible to walk all the way to s.b marg cause by that time water level increased up to waist level and the gutter holes started open automatically because of the pressure. that was so nice of the local people who were standing aside to those holes and directing peoples to the safer sides.

i was horrified by viewing the sight of floating taxis below our building. am at office and there is no possibility to move out cause of the flood. It was a horrible experience!!!!

-- Sreeram Seshadri

In our life there comes a time when something happens & u remember it for lifetime & this is one such day in lives of many people to remember, where everyone is stranded either on roads, railway stations or in their offices not knowing what to do. i work in a company at bandra, kala nagar & stay at mira road. have not been able to go home lke many others due to this horrid rains.

the worst part is my wife is 8 months pregnant there is no one at home. there is no electricity in our bulding & she is all alone not knowing what to do. even if she has to buy some thing she will have to walk down 5 floors, pass thru hip level water & get the things & I'm stuck here all alone as few of my colleagues had not come to office & the others who had gone for meetings, dont have any idea about them as all the mobile networks are either jammed up or the battery has conked of.

somehow spent last night by a generous dinner by a restaurant which he didnt charge for. this is what shows the true spirit of mumbai & mumbaikars, when they come forward & do whatever possible to help mumbai & mumbaikars.

hope the rain gods are listening to thousands & lacs of prayers of the people stranded & wish they halt up for sometime so that all the people can reach home safe & sound.

Rajesh S

URGENT: NEED HELP TO RESCUE STRANDED PEOPLE

There are 25 or so people stuck on top of a bus in a flooded area at Air India Colony, Bldg No 28, Near Kalpana Theater in Mumbai. Can someone contact the concerned authorities and arrange for a search & rescue team? My sister is one of those 25 people. I am right now in the US and am in touch with my family.

The above information was passed on to my by my family. These people have been stuck there for more than 12 hours. PLEASE SEE IF YOU CAN HELP IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE.

--Hrishikesh Dalvi

My friend Samir Joshi and his family are stuck in their building, water levels have reached the first floor and they are desperately in need of help.

His address is Kedarnath Apartments, 2nd Floor, Next to Tata Telco Auto Garage. His mobile number is 9819047602.

Please if you can call him with advice or anything we would really appreciate it.

--Regan Rodricks

It was devastating, a complete disaster. Rain which began at early hours simply refused to stop.

With the trains & buses going out of track, the city was begining to feel the grip of a standstill. Heavy rainfall followed by flooding in very many areas have sent jitters to the young unattended children, young girls, and most women.

We were at project site at MTNL-BKC, from the vendor's side. we could see that hundreds of school children, students, office goers had no place to go.

MTNL (BKC) opened their gates to provide shelter to thousands of passerbyes, hundred of school children, some with their parents.. we had to walk down for a few kilometers and could finally manage to get some biscuits for our guests(mostly school children).

we provided a few mobile handsets to our guests so that they could communicate with their families in such time of distress.

I wonder where would a person go ?? wht are they supposed to do ?? wht steps would govt take, if any. am sure the shameless politicians would only be interested to do something if they get some milage from it.

don't you think this is no less than a 'tsunami'?

--Vivek Malhotra

This is Rizwan Coatwala working at Pali Naka, Bandra.On 26 i left my office at 6 pm to go to Bandra station for the harbour line as i stay at Sandhurst road.I went down my office waiting for the bus to come at the stop opposite to Pali Presidency hotel. Waiting,for more than half an hour i along with my friends and colleagues decided to go walking to the station. No rickshaws ready to stop. With great hardships we reached the station as there was huge traffic and a herd of people wanting to go towards the station. Most of them coming back with disappointment as the water was loddged everwhere.

One friend left to Andheri (East), two others left for Nerul. Another close colleague of mine wanted to go to Thane, he went towards the station and i was left alone in the middle looking out for some bus.

I saw some people climbing a truck with cement, i asked them. they told me that it will go to Byculla.I climbed the truck along with my bag. There were already 6 people,one middle aged man very much irritated ,there were students from Rizvi college and so on. I started feeling myself as Shahrukh Khan shooting for a movie similar to Swades at the top of the truck.

Slowly slowly the truck moved and marched towards the IOC building at Bandra. There we waited for 2 hours on the lorry but it started moving inch by inch,all the people on the lorry decided to get down.I told them that once the traffic is reduced the lorry will move.The irratated person said "bus kar ab." looking at the sky to Almighty. I said "Yeh to Allah ki rehmat hai Zehmat nahi. The whole indian economy is relying on monsoon ,if it doesnt rain for one year even an ordinary person like us get affected indirectly."

the people on truck alighted.I was sitting alone watching the people walking faster than any other man-made machine. School students were struggling to reach home as they were also stuck in their buses.

Suddenly the lights went off. Police vans started patrolling ,everywhere there was darkness except the lights of the vehicles. People atttended their call of nature. I was feeling cold my bag was wet,thanks to my mum who had put a raincoat in my bag.

I started getting petrified, i made a call at home that it will take me time to reach. I decided to get down and go back to look for some two wheeler. But all in vain. I decided to go back to my office for refuge.

While i was returning i came across an advertising van with the Banner "60% off" on United colors of Bennetton with lights focusing on it.In the darkness it provided light to the distressed public.

We enjoyed at the office and everyone made a call to their home informing their parents that they will wait in the office at night.

The next morning we got up at 5:30 and started looking for a cab at 6:30. Some of them were sleeping in their cabs, some were driving it,when enquired to hire, they started crying, "Kal raat se phasela hai, Hame Ghar jana hai par raaste block hai". We got back to our office waiting for the rains to stop and the water level to go down.

Akurli road in Kandivli seemed to have vanished under a the deluge of water that came rushing from the hills of the Sanjay Gandhi National park. Within a matter of minutes the nallas of Akurli road became raging torrents.

I have had this experience when the same thing had happened in 1997 but this was much more severe than that one.

Buffaloes were seen being washed along with the water.

We waded through the waist deep water through areas where the flow was less and reached the highway to find it jampacked as one side was under water and vehicles were using the other side to drive both ways.

We could see vehicles owners going towards Borivli stopping by the road to give lift to stranded people. We ourselves were given lift by a person going to fix a mobile network problem in mira road.

After taking 2 lifts and walking, we reached borivli station to find all trains are cancelled. Called up all my relatives to give them the information and advised them to stay in office rather than being stranded on road as we had encountered people on highway who had walked from Andheri.

But i want to give credit to the Mumbaites -- giving lifts to people, standing near drains to warn people, helping old people cross water logged roads -- they have shown that the spirit of Mumbai will never be affected by calamities that come upon Mumbai.

--Prasad S Patil

Its 8.49 a.m. and i am still on the computer surfing desperately to see any single mail of my husband who is stuck up in his office since yesterday. Its been more than 24 hours since he left for the office. last I could hear his voice was at around 9 pm yesterday that too through my neighbor's reliance mobile as my orange phone is not working. Thanks to IT department and rediff.com, I might approach him through mail/this message.

-- Jasdev Ahuja

This is Amol Kushe writing from US. My wife Sneha who is 6 months pregnant was trapped in traffic for about 10 Hours. And on top of water was so flooded that even after reaching Borivali, (we stay inside national park where there was lot of water) she could not go home and had to spend the entire night under the bridge in the car. As I tell my about my wife's troubles there are 2 guys whom I need to Thank a millions. One is my friend Sanju who was continiously with my wife who had actually come with her to andheri and other is my project manager in US Micheal Britto, who when came to know about my wife's problem did whatever he had in his control right from providing me a ISD facility so that I can stay in touch with my wife continiously.

But then the main point is that when is the drainage system in India goin to improve. Although this is the question which is best left unanswered, but this message is also of concern to all who have lost something or the other or were stuck up like my wife. Guys this is just one bad patch which will soon be over lets face it.

This was perhaps the worst torrential rain I have ever witnesed in life. The problem in Mumbai was compounded by the high tide in the Arabian Sea. I was in the office when it was announced at 4 pm that employees can leave for home early in view of heavy rains.

Being intelligent and guessing that trains would have stopped, I took a cab. The cab started from Nariman Point to Marine Lines and got stuck. This was when the cab driver smartly took turn towards V T station. As the luck would have had it, that road was even more jam packed. After about 2 hours we were still at VT.

Then I decided to stay in a nearby hotel. But I could not do so because the traffic was so packed that the door of the taxi was not in a position to open. If I dared to go out from window, I would definitely fall into knee deep water.

I stayed in the cab till 11:30 in the night and managed to get out. There was 50 waiting at a nearby restaurant. I tried to call up my wife but in vain. Mobile phones also seemed to be in jam like the road traffic.

It was a horrible night and the morning was not any better with the news that next 48 hours, heavy rains are expected.

--Bhaskar Jha

Last night was really totally disturbing night. I am able to reach my home successfully and on time with one of my friends. But after some time it was really shocking that rest of all our friends who leave from office get stucked in the mid. Police wont allowing the bus to away from Panvel, But thank God we continually in touch with them as Reliance mobiles are working Fine, They all remain in bus, And still are in bus. God knows when they are able to go ahead and relive the burden.

But I am not able to communicate to my sister (Sonali) who work in Grasim Cement Andheri East and live with her relatives in Thane. I am very much worry about her, there is no way i can contact her, I just request if anybody knows where is she, is she reached home safely please contact me. My number is 09324297858. I just pray to GOD that she is back home safely.

--Anuraj Tyagi

More Monsoon Tales: 1 - 2 - 3