India: Woman clings to wooden log, remains afloat for 16 hours in Uttar Pradesh

Jalaun (Uttar Pradesh): A 50-year-old woman fell into a rivulet here and kept herself afloat for 16 hours before she was finally rescued.

The woman, identified as Jai Devi, clung on to a piece of wooden log that came her way in the strong currents even as she was swept away into the flooded Yamuna on Friday.

She was rescued about 25 kilometres away in Hamirpur by some boatmen, who heard her cries for help and pulled her out of the river.

She was later reunited with her family by the police.

According to reports, Jai Devi had gone to her fields when she accidentally fell into the swollen Kilandar rivulet in Jalaun that empties into the river Yamuna.

After falling into the rivulet on Friday evening, she was swept away following a strong current that took her to the Yamuna River.

She caught on to a wooden log and remained afloat for more than 16 hours.

When the boatmen in the Manki village in Hamirpur district saw her drifting in the river, they alerted the police and rescued her.

She was admitted to a hospital and her son Rahul and daughter Vinita were informed.

The police later handed the woman to her family members.

Haraulipur police outpost in-charge Bharat Yadav said, “It was nothing but God’s miracle.”