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Cyclone Tauktae and Community’s Capacity
The story of the first responders of Garal Village in Una Taluka, Junagadh, Gujarat
Cyclone Tauktae caused widespread destruction in the horticulture plots, which led to the loss of livelihood for a majority of the horticulturalists in the village. There was widespread housing damage as well. Most of the houses in this village are pucca houses, and either made of stone and cement, or RCC, with the roof made from joist and plank technique. These roofs did not suffer any damage from the cyclone. However, roofs that were made of Mangalore tiles, tin or cement sheets held in place with stones, did suffer damage. As a result of these damages, people sheltering under these roof structures also suffered injury. Since the cyclone came at night and caused almost immediate blockage to roads, several villages got cut off from the rest of the world, till clearance took place, i.e., for at least 12 hours.
Garal is a Gram Panchayat located approximately 2km from the coastline, with predominant occupation being horticulture (Kesar Mango and Coconut). There was massive destruction of trees in this village which led to the main roads connecting the village, as well as the internal roads, getting blocked. A few males also faced minor injuries from things falling onto them. One man of 37 years also faced a severe injury to his leg, which was impaled from the tiles falling from the roof. He was in need of immediate surgery but because of the road blockage, the village people were not able to take him anywhere. That is when some of the youth of the village came to the decision to start clearing out the debris and fallen trees from the roads surrounding and leading to their village. While the government has already started this process of clearing out the debris, it would naturally take them time to reach all the affected villages. Therefore, rather than waiting for the government to arrive for debris clearance, the youth formed their own debris clearance team. There were two tractors in that village. Using those tractors, a group of five men began clearing out the fallen trees from the roads early in the morning, at approximately 2 a.m. By morning they had managed to clear the main roads leading to Garal, as well as the internal roads within the village. Thereafter, they went back into the village to assess the total injuries. The most severe was the case of the impaled leg, so they used the same tractors to take him to the nearest hospital for treatment. They managed to save his leg due to proactiveness and concern.
While the government and local organizations have a responsibility to address disaster affected areas, there is a reason the affected communities are called the first responders; in most cases, they have easiest and fastest reach. This case is a perfect example of the community and their capacity. While this village may not have had a disaster response force within the village, they had the willingness and the capacity to address at least a few issues.
