Woman rescued after being caught in flood waters ‘up to her chest’
A YOUNG woman who had to be rescued from the flood waters in Galway has told how she feared being swept away.
Ranjani Nagarajan (25), who is originally from India, moved to Galway last September. She had been walking home from work when she got trapped in flood waters which quickly rose to her chest.
Ms Nagarajan was just minutes from her apartment on Lower Fairhill Road when the flood waters suddenly rose dramatically.
“The water was up to my knees as I walked home. I was just two minutes away from my home when suddenly I was up to my chest in water. I’m really short and I was afraid I would slip into the flowing water,” she told the Irish Independent.
The young woman was passing Péarla na Mara restaurant when the waters rose. A restaurant worker managed to pull her up onto the window ledge.
“He grabbed me and pulled me out of the water. I started panicking and crying and I couldn’t breathe. We were both hanging there for about 10 minutes before more help came,” she added.
Ms Nagarajan was rescued after emergency services came to the scene and carried her further up the road to safety.
“They were really kind to me and put me on his shoulder and brought me back up to Monroe’s where the water wasn’t as high. He then went back for my bag for me,” she added.
After 20 to 30 minutes the flood waters completely subsided as quickly as they had risen. The young woman was left standing in the cold for over an hour in wet clothes as she waited for the waters to recede around her apartment.
“I’ve only just moved to Galway so I didn’t have anyone to call. I’m Indian so I’m not used to the cold and this was super cold. I had never seen something like this before,” she said.
After assisting others, the emergency services returned to the area with a boat and brought the young woman home.