Tag: CycloneRelief Bengal2009
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Cyclone Aila: Food distribution
One of the things that took us all by surprise often was the number of people who came to eat. Initially we started seating everybody and serving them but soon found out that this would be a fatal experience. Firstly the number of people who came to eat was a sizeable one and the people to serve them.. very few. After cooking the food in that heat and with that soggy wood, and again coming out and serving the food; carrying these huge vessels from one end to the other was a great challenge. And then getting these huge vessels…
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Cyclone Aila Deulbari Village
Cyclone Relief – West Bengal 2009 With great difficulty we managed to carry all the stores and supplies from the launch alighting point to the village. Many locals also helped us. The village was totally ravaged by the flood waters. Roads were washed away and houses damaged. Huge stacks of hay had been displaced and were now sitting bang on the middle of the road because of the surging waters. We started the medical camp within half an hour and the doctors started seeing patients at a brisk pace. By the end of two hours they had seen around 150…
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Off to a new village
4 th June 2009, Deulbari , W Bengal Cyclone Relief – West Bengal 2009 The next two days went off similarly. One the 3rd day some senior government officials came to visit the camp and were generally happy with the work that was being done. While discussing they mentioned that there was some local talk that our doctors were not administering saline to the diarrhea patients. Than the doctors and self explained to them that there were several reasons for this kind of talk that was going on. Firstly the doctors said “saline is administered to a patient only when…
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food and medicine for Naginabad
Bengal Cyclone relief 2009 Naginabad Village, 1st June 2009 A member of the local Panchayat showed me around the island which was surrounded by rivers and backwaters on either side. He pointed out the huge breach in the embankment in one place through which the major quantity of salt waters had entered the villages, inundated the fields with salt water, washed away roads, cattle, stocks, grains, etc and also demolished houses. A statement often heard was that it was a blessing that the flooding of the villages took place in the day time. Had this calamity happened at night there…
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Started the camp
Bengal Cylone Releif 2009 31st May 2009, Naginabad Village The first patient arrived at 5AM and we had to gently convey to him that the clinic would not open until 8AM as everything had to be set up. We soon organized the store, the kitchen and the clinic along with the pharmacy. It took more time per patient than it would have normally taken as we needed to use an interpreter between the doctor and the patient, as the local knew no other language leaving Bengali. On the first day the doctor treated around 200 patients. Many of the elders…
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first day at Cyclone relief camp
Bengal Cylone Releif 2009 Preparations and the first day at the camp 30th May 2009 The day (26th May 2009) dawned as usual with rain bringing great relief for the people of Calcutta, who were roasted under the scorching heat for nearly a month. The people were set to their daily routine. Suddenly at about 10’0 clock, strong wind started blowing with a speed of about 120 Kmph. The sudden emergence of strong Cyclonic storm, brought the normal communing system and the public transport system to a grinding halt. Almost all the roads were blocked with uprooted trees. The cyclone…