I remember 26th July!

26th July 2005, Mumbai

Wondering if I am on a time machine dating back to 2005? Well, this day is when Mumbai blacked out completely exactly 3 years back. I call it a black day in Mumbai's history. This is what happened (to me) on that dreadful day.

The day started of a little drowsy and gloomy with thick dark clouds hovering above us. It did not raise suspicion as it was monsoon in Mumbai and it was normal to see dense clouds. The clouds were really thick(some kilometers thick ?? :-P) this day. I started off to college without my bike, walking down the short-cut lanes and railway tracks. At the local railway station, I met some of my friends, and wished my friend a "Happy Birthday!". College lectures started and the regular gossip was on.

The first alarm bell rang! An emergency bell?, That was lunch break :). By the way, our college did not have a bell to tring-tring at the end of lectures [;)]. Dabbas opened with fragrances of food spreading all around the class-room (canteen was full that day!). Zip-Zap and Lunch is over! It'll take a separate post to explain Zip-Zap!

First wave of panic message spreads around... "Central band ho gaya". Meaning, Either the central railway trains came to halt or were running with long delays.... We also got info that tracks were flooded due to continuous rain. Some time later, "Western bhi band ho gaya..." There was no sign of college management indicating the same to us. After 3:30 PM, red alert was raised and everybody were asked to manage their way back. Even then, I did not notice the criticality of the situation, as this was common in Mumbai. Heavy rains... college holiday. It was raining heavily when I and my friends were at the main gate of the college. We decided to wait for a few minutes thinking that the rain would subside. Nope.. As if to challenge us, it started pouring down heavily. Auto-rickshaws made their money now.. ("Make hay when the rain pours..") :) With great effort, we managed to get an auto..(with only 2 seats unoccupied), we asked the two girls (friends) to reach the bus-stand. Understanding the situation, we dispersed and caught separate autos. One of them saying.. "Jinda Bachenge toh kal milenge".

I need not catch a bus to go, but had to walk a lot of distance with a multi-folded umbrella. It was getting tougher to guess the direction wind, making my umbrella reverse time and again till I was completely drenched(after that there was no point holding an umbrella).

By the time I reached home, I was dripping wet! My mother scolded me for getting wet and asked if I could not wait till the rain came down. Though she agreed later that I have done the right thing by coming back, .. (Shaabashi.. wah wah).

Electricity was cut off(to prevent any electrocution, that might happen due to waters around the power station). Land-line and Mobile networks jammed. Late in the evening, water started to rise... and by night, the flood waters gulped the entire ground floor. [The dreadful night demands another post, as this is already long]

I considered myself lucky when I learnt that many of my friends had to walk in the flooded waters for kilometers and kilometers without any connectivity to inform their parents. I also heard that few family members returned back to their houses days after the black day!

After the 26th Jan Earth-quake, this was the second natural calamity I've been through, and would wish I never see them again.

[ Ending the post with a heavy heart! ]