Dubai: Dubai-based resident Hilda Oommen was vacationing in Hawaii with her daughter when she realised that her parents, who had lived in the UAE for over two decades before retiring to Kerala, was in the epicentre of floods. With oceans and continents separating them, there was no way of knowing if her rain-ravaged hometown Kozhencherry in central Kerala had spared her ageing parents.
Her father, in his late sixties with a heart condition, and her mother had to flee with just their passports and medicines in their hands to a safer zone. Kozhencherry is one of the worst-hit in the Kerala floods that has left the state reeling.
“I just got one message saying that they are moving out of their homes. After that I had no idea for the next five days about their whereabouts and how they were doing. We felt helpless when we couldn’t get through to them. It was traumatising,” said Oommen, who has lived in the UAE for 15 years. She claims a disaster doesn’t touch one personally until it begins to affect someone from your own circle.
“In this day and age where we are constantly in touch with each other over the phone, it was scary to realise that there was no way of connecting with them. Such a calamity is often the biggest leveller,” said Oommen from Hawaii. As soon as she returns to the UAE, she intends to bring her parents here.
“The last time I spoke to them they said the water is slowly receding and that they had gone home to check the aftermath. Rainwater which is mostly sewage has entered our homes that we spent our vacations in. My father believes that no amount of disinfectants can disinfect their homes now,” said Oomen.
Kerala, after a spate of heavy rainfall and landslides, is still grappling with the worst floods of the century. The death toll stands at 373 and more than 800,000 people have been displaced, with many rendered homeless. Dubbed as Kerala’s biggest tragedy ever since the state was formed in 1957, the road to rehabilitation looks tough.
“My mother who used to save her good bedsheets and crockery for a happy occasion now believes in living in the moment. Watching her neighbours being airlifted to safety and watching her home that they lovingly built being engulfed in water forces you to put things in perspective,” said Oommen.
For the last few days, her parents have also been existing without electricity.
“My next fear is the outbreak of diseases. We have to be careful that they re-build their homes at a pace that doesn’t affect their health. The only good thing is that the UAE government has been very supportive and that’s some relief,” said Oommen.
