Gobindra Patra, a 62-year-old marginal farmer from Talit village in Khanakul, Hooghly, saw his family home washed away in the recent floods.

Until September 16, Patra had proudly owned a two-storey concrete house, a dream built with his savings and contributions from his two sons. Now, he and nine family members find themselves homeless, taking refuge on the embankment of the Dwarakeshwar river.

“I never imagined that the floodwaters would destroy my home. We had to take shelter on the roof as the water began to rise. I’ve never witnessed a flood like this in my lifetime,” Patra said, reflecting on the devastation that has affected six concrete houses inhis village.

Khanakul I and II blocks are among the hardest-hit areas, with local officials describing the flooding as the worst in a decade. Over 5 lakh people across rural Hooghly have been impacted, with many losing their homes entirely. Incessant rainfall resumed early Thursday, raising fears of further flooding. Patra and at least 40 others from six families, all of whom lost their homes just a week ago, are bracing for another crisis as the DVC released 26,000 cusecs of water on Thursday morning because of heavy rainfall in Jharkhand.

On September 17, Patra and 24 other villagers were trapped in their homes until police teams arrived in the early hours, conducting dramatic rescues just minutes before the houses collapsed. Police and NDRF teams rescued 61 people from various locations in the area.

“We rescued all 25 people at 3am on September 17. Saving lives was the priority at this time,” said Kamanasish Sen, the Hooghly rural district police chief, who was present at the vulnerable embankment with a team of local officers.

Kartik Bera, 74, who took shelter in a concrete house with his paralysed wife, Paribala, said they narrowly escaped death, as the police forcibly dragged them out of the water-trapped house.

The devastation in the remote village of Khanakul and the survival stories of so many people reflect the severity of the flood that wreaked havoc in at least four districts of south Bengal since September 16. Those who lost their homes are now living under the open sky. They are unsure of building their houses again on the same land, which has turned into a 15-foot-deep ditch after the floodwaters washed away the soil.

“We don’t know if the government will help us build new homes elsewhere. We have no other land where we can rebuild our shelters,” said Shampa Patra, one ofthe victims.

Manas Kumar Bag, a migrant worker, returned from Bangalore a few days ago after learning that the one-storey house he built with his hard-earned money had been washed away.

“Do you see that patch of concrete amid the debris? That was my home. I worked day and night to build it. Where will we go?” asked Bag.

Along with the state government, Hooghly rural police coordinated with several social organisations and alumni associations from institutions like the Calcutta chapter of IIM Ahmedabad and NIT Durgapur to provide substantial relief materials.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee recently instructed officials in the flood-affected districts to register the names of those who lost their homes so that they could be added to the list of beneficiaries eligible for new dwelling units funded by the state. However, the state will not begin releasing funds for this projectuntil December.

“But where will we stay until then? How many months will we have to spend under the tarpaulin?” asked Patra.