An emotional homecoming after 5 days in flooded Chennai

Passengers wait at deserted Chennai airport before boarding the first flight to Dubai after the service resumption on Monday evening.

Relief, happiness and anxiety - a mix of emotions filled the minds of passengers who boarded a Dubai flight from Chennai on Monday evening.
Air India's AI905 was the first flight to take off to the UAE after five days of closure of the airport in the flooded city.
The airline's executive director for Southern Region R. Harihar told Khaleej Times over phone from Chennai that 101 passengers boarded the flight that took off at 6.45pm (IST).
Most of them were passengers who were stranded after the flight cancellations that followed the airport closure. Some passengers flew with children.
Prior to boarding, a couple of them spoke to Khaleej Times about their experiences in the flood-hit capital of Tamil Nadu.
"I can't believe I am flying back to Dubai," said Mangal Suvarnan, a Dubai-based music producer who had gone down to Chennai for a cousin's marriage.
Suvarnan was supposed to catch his return flight last Wednesday. But he had to stay back with three partners of his company after the airport closure.
"Once the rain started to fall the entire day, we decided to stock up some food. But suddenly everything started stopping in stages. First it was the Internet, second the mobile data and finally the electricity went out completely."
After the power outage, Suvarnan said they started using candles and conserved water.
"We got a bit nervous when there was no tap water available.... The most dangerous part of it was us trying to go out to get water and candles. But the craziest part was that it felt safe because my friends were around." "It was really a humbling feeling without any of the technology that we are used to. We, friends, became much closer than we ever would have in any other situation," said Suvarnan.
While he was happy at the thought of reuniting with his family and friends in Dubai, his co-passenger Yogesh Kumar did not sound so well.
A retail merchandiser with Splash, Kumar was leaving behind his parents at his home in Chennai. He had, in fact, gone to India on November 26 to stay with them and spend some days with his friends in Mumbai.
"I had to cancel my Mumbai trip and we were forced to stay indoors on our fourth floor apartment after the streets were flooded."
"When a disaster like this happens nobody is prepared. We have no idea of what to do and what will be the aftermath," he said.
"Our lives were taken back to the basics when there was no power and mobile network went off. I pretty much stayed indoors."
"I felt it was a good time to be with parents and spent time connecting with them more. I wouldn't have gotten this time otherwise. Since we had stocked up food supplies, homemade food was always available," said Kumar.
Their flight landed at Dubai International Airport by 10pm here.
UAE-based airlines are yet to resume their services to Chennai. Emirates said it will resume Chennai services with EK 546 which departs from Dubai at 2.45pm here today. Etihad said it was monitoring the situation and providing regular updated statements on the current situation (to the passengers).
sajila@khaleejtimes.com

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