Famished in rain-whacked Kanyakumari, Ockhi death toll rises to 12

NAGERCOIL: It was 2 am on Thursday when the pitter-patter of rainfall woke me up. I knew there was a storm brewing in the Bay of Bengal but there was no word on its intensity. I peered around in my women’s hostel room and found there was no power as well.

I tried to catch some sleep till 6 am, after which I started calling fellow hacks to find out if they faced a similar situation and if they knew when electricity supply would be restored. All of them appeared equally clueless.

Communication then became a worry as both my mobile phone and the power bank only had half battery charge. The signal from the mobile phone tower was also weak and intermittent. A few hours later, I walked down the street to see if any shops or hotels were open to grab a bite.

There was none. With rain pouring down the streets, I knew I couldn’t travel long distances. And the streets were either choked with traffic or blocked by collapsed trees.

By afternoon, information had trickled in about cyclone Ockhi and I knew we had to be prepared for the worst. I met up other reporters and found all bachelors in the group hadn’t had a morsel of food since morning, like me.

I quickly filed an initial report to my office, but reaching officials for updates or verification of information was impossible as calls didn’t go through.

Friends suggested I go home, which is just two hours from Nagercoil. At 5 pm, I left by a bus but reaching my hometown in Tirunelveli district took over three hours as fallen vegetation all along the route made the vehicle crawl.

After reaching home, hunger got a whole new definition in my mind as I had the first piece of chappati of the day.

On Friday morning after making a few calls, I realised some of my fellow reporters still hadn’t had any food. My mother quickly prepared packets of chappati with tomato side dish and lemon rice, which has a longer shelf life.

Reaching the city was again tedious but I somehow made it and shared the food with the hungry reporters. We were back at work. One dreadful and eventful day had passed. P5,6,8

Ockhi death toll in Tamil Nadu shoots up to 10
A day after the cyclone Ockhi battered Kanniyakumari district, the death toll due to rain-related incidents in the state rose to 10, with six men dying on Friday alone

`4 lakh solatium for relatives of rain victims
Chief Minister Palaniswami expressed his condolences to the kin of those who died and announced a solatium of `4 lakh for the relatives of each of the victims.

Modi calls Palaniswami, promises financial help
PM Modi called Palaniswami on Friday, enquired about the damage and promised to extend assistance. The CM said a report would be sent seeking financial assistance

Death toll climbs to seven in cyclone-hit Kerala
The calamity claimed seven lives in Kerala over the last two days.
Fifty-six houses were completely destroyed and 2,755 people were housed in temporary shelters