Disaster Remembrance Week

A year ago to this day, was one of the worst disasters that struck this and other countries. The Asian Earthquake and subsequent Tsunami, that laid waste property and human life.

Then came Katrina and her cronies. Tearing through New Orleans, disrupting life and business.

And then there was the August Cloudburst in Bombay. Followed soon after by the Pakistan & India eartquake. And then 2 months of battering rains and floods in Tamil Nadu and Madras.

A year of disasters. The least we can do is spend a week paying homage to the lives lost and thinking about the survivors. It's always the survivors of a calamity who are worse off.

All this week and the next, you'll see a ribbon on top of Chennai Help, as well as the image you see to the right. Please do pass the word on, get involved.

To quote the people at the World Wide Help group:

Last December and this January, the online community came together as never before to help in the aid efforts in South-East Asia. The lessons learned there were put to use, and improved upon, when the other tragic events of the year unfolded.

Can we harness that goodwill, that togetherness, that willingness to help once more?

The WorldWideHelp group would like you to join us in Remembrance Week. Here's what we suggest you do.

Use your blogs, your home pages, your wikis, your newsletters. Link to your favourite charities and NGOs, write a paragraph about them and the work they are doing, and ask your readers to make a donation.

Please.

Disaster Remembrance Week

Yet another one on its way

Buckle up Chennai!

Look out! It is a flood

Many parts of Greater Chennai are flooded. Several roads are submerged and ground floor houses are threatened or already inundated by sewage tinged flood waters.

My parents tell me that their car is completely submerged in water and the ground floor houses in their apartment complex in Poonamallee High Road are water logged. Luckily they are marooned on the third floor.

Power is off in a lot of places. While there is no rain now, the city still has some way to go to recover.

CCG shot the pictures above on his treacherous bus journey to Madras. To quote him, So, I made this bus trip to Madras, misguidedly thinking it will be safer than the train that hugs the storm battered coast. Turns out I was wrong. How wrong? A good picture speaks a thousand words(7 words in that one phrase, BTW) and all that jazz, so see attachment. Oh BTW - the scariest thing you folks can see early morning is a cow, probably heavier than you, just being lifted off its legs and carried away by a bunch of Hydrogen and Oxygen atoms - granted, a large bunch.

Bad news

Some lake is overflowing, not sure which one. Flood warning has been issued in Egmore, Aminjikkarai, Kotturpuram areas. Semi confirmed reports say that the Adyar River has come upto the banks near the Kotturpuram bridge. People in Kotturpuram have been asked to evacuate as per Sun News.

Update 18.00 hrs 03.12.2005: The Vedanthangal Lake has been breached. Water outflow from Puzhal and Chembarambakkam has increased.

Update 18.30 hrs: 100 ft road in Vadapalani is under water. Further details in News Today, Chennai's eveninger.

Chennai battered again

Looks like the now weakened Cyclone Bazz was waiting for the India Srilanka Test Match to begin. On the morning of 2nd December, the sky opened up. Non stop rain as before. By evening all the roads were flooded. I took Mount Road, fairly clear and entered GN Chetty Road which was a swimming pool. Cenotaph Road, which is normally clear was also flooded. Chittaranjan Road, (the road next to Cenotaph Road ICICI) is in knee deep water.

My brother in law's Ground Floor flat in Mogappair is about to be flooded. Looks like the Ambattur Lake has breached / opened and the water is flooding Mogappair. Situation is bad in Arcot Road, Valsaravakkam too. Our famous non blogger CCG, is sitting in a bus in Pattabiram for the last 4 hours with traffic building up on either side. Last time he came to Chennai, he spent 8 hours stranded in a train.

Now, the sun is out and the weather is warm. But the flood water (mixed with sewage) in many places is yet to recede. The suburbs are badly hit.

Signs of the Baaz are starting to appear in Chennai city. The gray cloud blanket overhead looks ominous and the rain showers have been steady this past hour. Sun News' latest update mentions that the cyclone, 300km east south-east of Chennai, may cross today.