On the night of October 31, Uma Kanta Dikshit of Radhamohanpur in Bhadrak lost nine members of his family and a close friend to the flood, but Kuntala Devi of Aharpur village will never forget the day her daugther Banya was born.

With flood waters reaching threatening heights, Kuntala Devi was put on the roof of their hut by her husband Maheswar Swaine with the help of neighbours.

At around 5.15 pm, Kuntala gave birth to a girl on the rooftop. The baby was christened `Banya' after the floods, and she survived the fury of the elements even though no medical attention or medicines were at hand for the mother and child. ``It is amazing how Kuntala and the baby survived under the open sky. The baby has sturdily withstood hours of rainfall,'' Parasuram Sau, a neighbour,said.