Though the agency had alerted the authorities as early as 6.30 am on September 15, found its office near Kshetrapal Mandir under water late in the evening. By 10 am discharge at the rate of 50,000 cusec had already started and was increasing gradually.

In between supplying the data to the users concerned, the staff manning this otherwise unknown department -- for all practical purpose it's in business only during monsoons -- battled the menacingly rising water level.

The agency had shifted its office here only a couple of years ago from near the Umra Jakat Naka, from where it handled the 1994 floods without any bruises. But the recent floods left the agency battered; its staff shocked and the office in bad shape.

A newly bought Gypsy jeep, which was yet to be given a registration number by the Regional Transport Office, now bears only the ungainly marks left by muddy waters.

The staff survived only on limited ration of boiled rice and salt, but determination and commitment kept them going. The wireless room on the first floor was converted into a makeshift kitchen and the operator played the cook while others took turn at doing the other chores.

When they forecast flood could not they anticipate fate of their locality? ``We did not know the area was so low-lying. Next time we will store supplies for a month,'' says a employee.

When they asked for relief they got it a full 15 hours later, when a non-governmental organisation arranged for food. That was the last time they saw any food packets, though they got assurances aplenty. Their neighbours caught in more deep waters helped them out once or twice. ``On other occasions it was rice and salt, '' says extra Assistant Director Ashok Kumar, who was the first to forecast flood.

Flood left all but one telephone in the agency office inoperative. What if the only telephone had also given up? ``Thank god, or else data collected by us would have been useless,'' says Executive Engineer R K Singh.

Relaying the data to the collector's office by road was almost impossible as the area was several feet under water. The wireless network on which they get data allows them to keep in touch only with staff and other offices.

It is not the best of the times to put up with bureaucrats and state government employees when the major portion of the city was under water and its administration clueless. They were asked details they could never provide and control things not under their jurisdiction.

While one wanted the CWC to reduce the discharge of water from the Ukai dam, forgetting that the dam authorities report to the State government, another wanted data after every half an hour. Unjustified demands on CWC caused tempers to run high and led to verbal duels, another offshoot of such calamities.

As if that was not enough, after the flood waters receded, short circuit in the soggy electrical network caused a little fire on the ground floor. Their worries did not end there. Flood and short circuit later, the office continued to be surrounded by heaps of garbage and slush for quite some time.