CHENNAI: As a nurse, A Sabeena is no stranger to patients hanging between life and death. The Wayanad landslides of July 30 left the 40-year-old clinging to one such thin line — a zip line across a raging river in a ravaged swathe of the Kerala pocket to save lives.
“It took two minutes to cross the river. It was spine-chilling because of the raging waters beneath me.I just closed my eyes and prayed as I went across,” Sabeena said Thursday, recalling she saw bodies being swept away under her.
The single mom zip-lined 10 times over five days across the Mundakkai-Suralmalai river, saving 35 lives. A bridge over the river had collapsed, leaving dozens stranded on an island on the other side.
This Independence Day, the native of Gudalur town in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district was speaking after receiving the “Kalpana Chawla Award for daring and courageous enterprise” from Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin, who had especially invited her to the secretariat for the honour.
Rewinding to July 30 when access was cut off across the river, the hero who stepped up to the challenge reminisced about that morning. “It was 11am on July 30 when I got a call from colleagues at the NGO where I work, saying the Kerala govt needed nurses in Wayanad,” said Sabeena.
Sabeena packed her bags, travelled 70km to Wayanad, braving heavy rain, winds and knee-deep sludge, to reach the ravaged area at 11am. “I had seen footage of the destruction, of bodies strewn everywhere and houses washed away but that did not stop me,” Sabeena said.
With currents being too strong for rescuers to swim across, NDRF teams had strung up a zip-line across the river. “Around 100 women nurses were engaged in various tasks. NDRF forces wanted only male nurses to zip-line, but no one was available. Also, the women were too scared because of the fierce currents. I told them I would cross over. My only thought was saving lives. I did not think about my own life,” said Sabeena.
Five minutes later, wearing a raincoat, Sabeena was strapped to the zip-line. Once she rappelled to the other side, she treated people who had been bitten by snakes, wounded in the landslide and many with fever.
The white-knuckle rides across the river soon became a routine. She would reach the island at 11am, offer medical aid and return at 5pm. “NDRF forces managed to bring them back using the zip-line. Later, the bridge was filled up with mud and made accessible,” Sabeena said, referring to the 35 people who were rescued.
Sabeena’s derring-dos came into the spotlight only a few days ago when volunteers from her village began circulating videos of her zip-lining. “The post went viral and reached CM Stalin. I am so happy about getting this award from the CM,” said Sabeena.
What overwhelms her most now is her daughter’s WhatsApp status. “For the last few days, my daughter’s status reads ‘There’s no one in this world braver than my mom’. Seeing this gives me so much joy,” says Sabeena.
Daughter Shifna, a nursing student, said the biggest lesson her mom taught her was that humanity was always “top priority”.
“It took two minutes to cross the river. It was spine-chilling because of the raging waters beneath me.I just closed my eyes and prayed as I went across,” Sabeena said Thursday, recalling she saw bodies being swept away under her.
The single mom zip-lined 10 times over five days across the Mundakkai-Suralmalai river, saving 35 lives. A bridge over the river had collapsed, leaving dozens stranded on an island on the other side.
This Independence Day, the native of Gudalur town in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district was speaking after receiving the “Kalpana Chawla Award for daring and courageous enterprise” from Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin, who had especially invited her to the secretariat for the honour.
Rewinding to July 30 when access was cut off across the river, the hero who stepped up to the challenge reminisced about that morning. “It was 11am on July 30 when I got a call from colleagues at the NGO where I work, saying the Kerala govt needed nurses in Wayanad,” said Sabeena.
Sabeena packed her bags, travelled 70km to Wayanad, braving heavy rain, winds and knee-deep sludge, to reach the ravaged area at 11am. “I had seen footage of the destruction, of bodies strewn everywhere and houses washed away but that did not stop me,” Sabeena said.
With currents being too strong for rescuers to swim across, NDRF teams had strung up a zip-line across the river. “Around 100 women nurses were engaged in various tasks. NDRF forces wanted only male nurses to zip-line, but no one was available. Also, the women were too scared because of the fierce currents. I told them I would cross over. My only thought was saving lives. I did not think about my own life,” said Sabeena.
Five minutes later, wearing a raincoat, Sabeena was strapped to the zip-line. Once she rappelled to the other side, she treated people who had been bitten by snakes, wounded in the landslide and many with fever.
The white-knuckle rides across the river soon became a routine. She would reach the island at 11am, offer medical aid and return at 5pm. “NDRF forces managed to bring them back using the zip-line. Later, the bridge was filled up with mud and made accessible,” Sabeena said, referring to the 35 people who were rescued.
Sabeena’s derring-dos came into the spotlight only a few days ago when volunteers from her village began circulating videos of her zip-lining. “The post went viral and reached CM Stalin. I am so happy about getting this award from the CM,” said Sabeena.
What overwhelms her most now is her daughter’s WhatsApp status. “For the last few days, my daughter’s status reads ‘There’s no one in this world braver than my mom’. Seeing this gives me so much joy,” says Sabeena.
Daughter Shifna, a nursing student, said the biggest lesson her mom taught her was that humanity was always “top priority”.
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