Social media proves boon for Chennai flood-hit

Chennai FloodsLike in several natural calamities in the past, social media is once again proving a boon for the flood-affected residents of the southern city of Chennai. People are making extensive use of social media for reaching out to stranded various pockets of the flood-hit capital city of Tamil Nadu.

Eyewitnesses say that hundreds of people have taken to social media platforms for coordinating search, rescue and food distribution efforts. There is also no dearth of good Samaritans who have thrown open the doors of their houses to provide shelter to the people who cannot reach their homes, due to complete communication break in the wake of the floods.

According Raghavan, he tweeted about welcoming flood-affected people in his house after seeing similar posts on social media. “If we can’t offer help in this hour of crisis, then what’s the worth of human life? I am feeling helpless that I can’t go to the affected areas because the roads are submerged. The least I can do is to open my house to people,” he said.

Sree Kumar is also hosting three people in his house and says he has space to accommodate more. “So many people are affected and they don’t have food or a place to stay. We have to help each other. If you do your bit, others will follow you,” he told the BBC.

A temporary website Chennairains.org has also been set up to coordinate the offers of shelter and food. The website has asked people willing to offer their house as temporary shelters to register their names in the site, which is being shared widely.

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