A Mother’s 12‑Hour Night on a Mango Tree: Surviving the Assam Floods

On the night of July 19, 2026, relentless rain turned the fields of Holang Katoni village in Assam’s Sivasagar district into a rushing river. Within an hour the water rose to chest level, forcing families to scramble for any dry spot.

Rekhamoni Gogoi, a 32‑year‑old mother, heard the water roar and felt the floor of her home give way. With her three‑year‑old son clutched to her chest, she shouted for help, her voice trembling but urgent.

A neighbor, Kalpana Gogoi, heard the cries and beckoned her over. Together with three other women who had also taken shelter in Kalpana’s modest house, they tried to stay inside, but the floodwater kept climbing, licking the doors and windows.

By about 8 p.m., it was clear the house would soon be under a few feet of water. “There was darkness all around us. It felt like the world had vanished,” Rekh recalls. With no rescue in sight, the women made a desperate decision: climb the large mango tree standing in the courtyard.

Kalpana helped Rekh hoist herself and her son onto a sturdy branch. One by one, the other women scrambled up, finding footholds on the rough bark. The tree became a makeshift platform, a thin slice of safety amid the rising tide.

For twelve hours they clung to the tree. There was no food, no water, only the muffled rush of floodwater below and the occasional distant rumble of helicopters. “My son is the most precious thing I have after twelve years of marriage,” Rekh said, “so I would rather die on this branch than let anything happen to him.” At one point the little boy whispered that perhaps the leaves could be eaten, a bittersweet reminder of how raw their situation was.

When the first pale light of dawn broke through the clouds, the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) arrived on the scene. Armed with ropes and flood‑rescue gear, the team lifted the women one by one to safety. Exhausted but alive, Rekh and her son were taken to a relief camp, where they now wait for the waters to recede.

The incident is a stark illustration of the human cost behind the flood statistics. While officials tally deaths and displaced families, stories like Rekh’s reveal the quiet heroism that surfaces when nature turns cruel.