Karnataka - Bijapur   

She braved nature’s fury for 36 hours

Staff Correspondent

Picture of courage: Lakkavva and her two-year-old son recovering at the Civil Hospital in Bijapur on Tuesday.

BIJAPUR: It was a miraculous escape for Lakkavva, a labourer who is in her early twenties, and her two-year-old son Sudhakar. They were rescued from the flood waters of the Don after 36 hours.

She could not do anything to save her four-year old daughter Sudharani and four close relatives who were washed away. But her determination to protect her son from getting drowned saved the life of both of them.

Lakkavva and her son are at the civil hospital here and are yet to recover from the shock. She is from Todalabagi village in Jamkhandi taluk of Bagalkot district, but has been staying at Katnalli on the bank of the Don since 2004.

Lakkavva and her husband Siddaray Chouri had a charcoal kiln in a field taken on lease at Katnalli. The family of Hanmanth alias Mudakappa Galave and family, their relatives, also joined them there. They built thatched houses near their kilns.

They did not anticipate the trouble when heavy rain started around noon last Friday. By 9 p.m., they saw water near their dwellings. But even before they sensed danger, the village was cut off. Soon, their dwellings were all water-logged. They could not withstand the force of the water when it rose above waist and they started getting washed away.

“We were clinging to a small plant. We managed to catch hold of a jaliflora bush. Sudharani was being carried by my my sister-in-law who managed to cling on to a bush for a few hours. But around dusk, she lost control and was washed away along with Sudharani.

After an hour, Galavi and his son Mahesh (5) too lost control and drowned. But I was determined to save my son. By Saturday noon, the water started receding and I managed to cling on to the same bush. Sudhakar was almost unconscious. We had to wait till 10 a.m. on Sunday to be rescued by some shepherds,” Lakkavva said.

Her husband Siddaray Chouri survived as he was away from the house on the day the waters rushed in.

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