: First person: Surviving a deadly hurricane in New York #IndiaNEWS #International As extreme weather events grow in intensity and frequency, nowhere is guaranteed to be safe from danger, as New Yorkers

First person: Surviving a deadly hurricane in New York #IndiaNEWS #International
As extreme weather events grow in intensity and frequency, nowhere is guaranteed to be safe from danger, as New Yorkers discovered on 1 September 2021, when Hurricane Ida struck, causing floods that led to some 29 deaths, and shutting down much of the subway system. Amrita Bhagwandin was at her home in the New York Borough of Queens on that traumatic day.

“I emigrated from Guyana in 1998 and have lived in Queens ever since. I live with my husband and my daughter. We are a small family but have many relations in New York and New Jersey.
The community here is very diverse, from Guyanese, Trinidadians and Bengalis, to Indians, Chinese, and Filipinos. We are a very happy bunch of hard-working people. We plant gardens, we send our kids to colleges, and do all kinds of things to give back to the community.

American Red Cross/Scott Dalton
Destruction left in the wake of Hurricane Ida in New Sarpy, Louisiana, August 2021.

It’s time to leave
On 1 September, when Ida hit, I was working from home. I switched on the television to get the alerts; it was clear a storm was brewing. I focused on the radar and followed the storm on the map. It looked like it was going to come through the northeast. When I saw how much red there was, I knew it was definitely going to affect us.
Some improvements had been made on the storm sewers on our block in the previous year, so I was hopeful that we would not feel the impacts too hard. But as the afternoon approached, I saw how many hours of rain they were forecasting. I became very worried, and I started to warn the neighbours to be very careful that night.
Usually, if there is a sign of flooding, I leave the house because I get panic attacks from the situation. So, I packed a bag and I said to them, lets leave. My husband and daughter initially wanted to stay and so my husband just dropped me off at my in-laws who live on higher ground just down the block.
I kept calling both of them and around 10:00 pm I told them they needed to leave the house. Right after I called them, the sewer hole right in front of my house popped. They barely made it out and drove up the block to my sister in-laws.

NASA/European Space Agency
Hurricane Ida is seen in this image taken aboard the International Space Station. The dangerous hurricane made landfall in Louisiana in the USA on 29 August, 2021.

‘They lost their lives in a matter of seconds’
We live on the corner of an intersection, and the water filled each side and went four directions. I was calling to make sure everyone was safe when I was told that someone was missing.