Tremors set off exodus in Bhavnagar

Suresh L Munjani, who stays at a Gujarat Housing Board house in the Bharatnagar area, was loading his Maruti with bags and other belongings. His house has developed cracks and is no longer safe. He was headed for a relative’s place in Gariyadhar taluka. He said staying on the road with children was no longer possible. “Only God knows what will happen to this town, no one can predict,” he said.

Surajben Gunvantbhai, who also stays in a GHB house in the Bharatnagar area, is so shaken that she breaks down at the very mention of the tremors. “My children were sleeping when the tremors came. Portions of the concrete fell from the ceiling on my children. Luckily, they escaped unhurt.”

In almost all the bylanes of Bharatnagar, Nutanbharati Society, people have erected shamiyanas (tents) where they sit on iron cots. Mattresses serve as partitions.

More than 400 people near Abhishek Society are now staying on the road and eating at a community kitchen. Didarali Virani, who stays in the colony, said the entire society was now on the road and no one was willing to step inside their houses. He said all the apartments had developed cracks and it was even risky to climb stairs. No was going to work.

Vinubhai G Gohil’s house in Nutan Bharati Society has been badly hit. He said on Tuesday nearly 50,000 people turned up to see his house which was hanging without any support on two sides. He had spent two nights on the road. If there was another major tremor, his house would collapse he is sure.

Nearly 70 per cent of the villagers in Tarsamiya have left leaving behind the aged and the infirm to take care of their houses and belongings. Kanji Devjibhai said the village roads were damaged, the water pipeline from his overhead tank had cracked and an electricity pole had collapsed.

Shyamji Dhanbhai of Ghyanshyampura in Malanka village said a house in the village had collapsed. A tearful Keshubhai Harji of the same village said almost 60 per cent of the families have moved out. “One gets up in the morning and thanks God for being alive and once again prays at night. I am not sure whether I will be alive tomorrow or not.”