As we write this our hands are folded in prayer and our hearts fervently hope for some succor for Chennai. As we all know, the city is in a deluge of water and life has been thrown out of gear for all those living in or visiting Chennai.
While there have been innumerable stories of people being stranded or caught in the midst of chaos there have been many more heartrending instances of people reaching out in every possible way, be it in the form of opening their hearts and homes for the victims or by braving the flood and distributing food, blankets and medicines to the afflicted. With no phone lines, transportation and power connections, the situation appeared grimmer day by day and there was no way of knowing about the safety of ones near and dear ones.
This is when heroes emerged. Not the ones we see on the silver screen on celluloid, rather everyday common man heroes who lent a helping hand be it for evacuations or for raising their voice and making timely pleas for help with their contacts and the world at large. As the incessant rains kept flooding the city there really seemed no obvious way of communication and perhaps no way out.
But that was not to be. Like a beacon of light, people found recourse through social media and help came pouring in, in real time, minute by minute.
As the catastrophe rages on, Chennaites have been actively tweeting or posting updates on their locations and their apparent situations. Moreover, groups on Facebook and Twitter have been alive with pictures, videos, contact numbers of volunteers on the ground and sometimes even real time pleas for help. Updates on centres for collection of relief supplies were posted immediately and kept the afflicted informed from time to time.
As has been the case with everyone in Chennai, at Open Designs we too were caught in this deluge and awaited for news with bated breath, more so when it was pertaining to the safety of our team members. In our case too, social media has been our salvage and truly, this post has been an earnest effort in underlying the potent power of social media as a positive and compelling medium of exchange.
With regards to tomorrow and what it brings for Chennai, we can only say
’’Where there is hope, there is faith.
Where there is faith, miracles happen’’
