Earthquake in Sikkim: Daughter's cry wakes up parents

Gangtok, Sept 20: Recollecting one of the most horrific moments in one's life itself is horrible. Anjali Paul, a house wife and a mother of a six-year-old, remembered the moment when her daughter's cry brought her to the worst nightmare of her life.

OneIndia spoke to Anjali who recollected the horrible moment when her daughter's sudden scream woke them up from their late-afternoon nap. She explained about the quake which changed their lives profoundly.

"My daughter's screaming first alerted me about the earthquake and I was perplexed. I have never experienced such a massive tremor in my life. I was so shocked and couldn't even move out of our house immediately," said Anjali.

Anjali also talked about her struggle to get food and water for her family following the devastating earthquake that occurred on Sunday, Sept 18. Hailing from Kolkata, Anjali had been encountering several problems during their stay in the hilly terrain in order to gather essential supplies for the family. However, after the tremor, their lives seem to have come to a standstill. All families in the region are now fearing the moment they run out of food and water. With no chances of getting fresh supplies soon, they have had to manage with existing supplies since the last two days.

"All schools are closed. However, my husband rushed to his office as BSNL office issued emergency call following the quake," stated Anjali while informing about their life after the earthquake.

Showing the "hill spirit" to hold the ever-smiling face, Anjali did not fail to inform how her life has transformed and she is increasingly attending to numerous phone-calls. "I have been attending number of phone calls since last three days," said an amused Anjali while thanking the government as landline phones have started working. Meanwhile, reports also suggested that mobile phone network will soon be back in all areas.

The earthquake in Sikkim and other parts of North-East India, which is believed to be the worst tremor in last 20 years, jolted all house holds in the entire region. However, the region is slowly recovering from its initial shock.

All roads, following continuous landslides, have been blocked around Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim. Recent media reports, however, claim that the main road to the epicenter (Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, near the border of Nepal and Sikkim), has been opened. Army personnel also said that it will take minimum 25 to 30 days to clear up the roads and debris.

Taking the death toll to 74, several people had reportedly died in West Bengal's Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Uttar Dinajpur. Most number of deaths have occurred in Sikkim, especially North and East Sikkim.

OneIndia News