June 25: The residents of Aman Gul and Gulab Nagar slum colonies are still in the dark about what happened yesterday night. But they have come to terms with the fact that it was not a `fireball' but a strong wind which, they believe, came from the sea.

They have kept aside all superstitious fears and are busy repairing their dwellings. "We are more concerned with the repairs now because it is the rainy season," said Ahmed Khan, one of the prominent local leaders. "Once the rains start, our houses will be flooded if the work is not done now," he added.

According to the locals, the story goes like this. A corpse was being burnt at the `Koli Marghat' or the cemetery of the fisherfolk at the sea-shore when a strong blast of air, in the mould of a whirlwind, was formed in the sea which was directed toward the slums. This wind is supposed to have carried logs from the burning pyre and lent a flaming red colour to the wind. The wind struck a mosque on the outskirts of the slum, turned toward a few houses and caused extensive damages.

The walls of a few houses and the mosque suffered cracks and tiles and asbestos sheets were blown away.

Abbasbhai, a local businessman, was sitting in the side verandah of his hutment when without any signs doors and windows started beating to and fro. "I started to move toward the door but it seemed a great force was pulling me back," he said.

But the theory of the whirlwind being formed in the sea comes under a cloud of suspicion because pieces of wood on the sea-shore which are usually used to dry fish remained untouched. A municipal cemetery with asbestos sheet roof was also saved from the `fireball'. The mystery continues to baffle the police who are seeking scientific help in their investigation. For now, the whole episode is, as a local put it, "kudrat ka kamaal".

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.