WHEN THE QUAKE STRUCK I THOUGH I WAS DYING by Clara A. Rodrigues

(Received by e-mail)

PANJIM: When Japan was rocked by the major quake which seismologists record as 9.0-magnitude on the Richter scale, Monica Rodrigues from Guirim was strolling with a five-month old baby in a park.  Working for the past 12 years in Japan as a household helper, Monica says, "I was far away from my home. Major transportation network had halted and there was a rush to catch cabs.

People were fleeing their offices and gathering on the roads. I could not get home. The trees were shaking and the ground felt like it was swinging. People were screaming as they ran to lean against something. I cannot remember how long the earth shook but my first reaction was to hold the baby."

"We are used to small earthquakes, but not ones like this. All communication snapped too. I walked a distance of an hour to reach the evacuation or safety zones where people gather in case of an earthquake. It is an open place and aid like water and blankets are provided for. I waited at the shelter with the baby till 11.30 in the night. If you wanted a cab, you had to wait in a serpentine queue. Although there were no homes broken in Tokyo, things in the house were all scattered and flung from their places," she adds, mentioning she had to wait from 6 in the evening till 12 midnight at the airlines to get a ticket.

That whole night Monica and the other inmates of the house did not sleep a wink. They were ready with a small bag to run for the shelter in case another major earthquake took place. Back home, Monica’s parents, sisters, husband and children were living traumatic moments.

"When the earthquake took place, I thought I was dying. I say a prayer for those people in Japan. We are Indians and we could come back home. Where will those Japanese go? Those who have the money can go for a short time out of the country but what about the poor?"

Monica’s daughter, Zena narrates, "My father called up and asked me to check the news. He came to know about the earthquake from his friends. It was sometime at 12 in the noon. My first thought was ‘Is my mother safe’? I tried calling her but could not contact her for an hour. Then the lines got connected and I spoke to her for a minute before the lines got disconnected again. We were relieved to know that she was safe."

Santana Gracias and her two sisters, Succorina Rodrigues and Antonetta Fernandes, all from Benaulim, along with their aunt Joanna Fernandes from Dramapur too experienced the earthquake in Japan.

Working in Japan since the last many years, they all were shaken up by the experience.

Santana, who works as a household help, says, "I cannot describe it. I was in the underground train when two earthquakes took place. Thankfully the next station came soon. It took me five hours to walk back home. The streets were crowded with people. All had reached home; I was the only one left. They were all worried about me since I did not reach. All along I was hoping my sisters would be safe."

Santana’s sister Succorina was in office when the tremors were felt. She came running down a flight of stairs from the 25th floor to the ground floor to save her life.  Santana says, "We left a lot of our belongings in Japan and came to Goa. We did not think of the things. Lives matter."

Monica says, "I have been to many countries like England, Australia, America, France, Portugal, but I have found Japan to be the safest place. In Tokyo you can walk alone in the middle of the road and no harm will be done to you. The security is top class and the people are so polite and non-interfering."

At this time of the year in Japan, it is the time when the beautiful cherries blossom. The sight is heavenly. But beneath the beauty an eerie calm has begun to set in, bringing with it memories that do not seem to go away.