Terror in Mumbai - my hometown

Every morning I switch on NPR and listen to the news as I get ready to go to work. A few minutes into my morning routine today, I stood still in horror as the news about the blasts in Mumbai, India, came over the airwaves. More than 160 people have died in a series of seven rush hour blasts on Mumbai's commuter train network, the city's lifeline. News reports and TV pictures show appalling scenes of mangled wreckage, dazed survivors, and frantic rescuers.

To me the tragedy has a personal element - Mumbai is the city I grew up in. I still have family and friends there, some living near the areas that were hit. I've traveled on those commuter trains and know how crowded they can get (more than 6 million people travel on Mumbai trains every day!). The first thing I did after hearing the news was call my folks in India. It took me a long while to get through (evidently the lines were jammed by people trying to reach their loved ones). Thankfully, everyone I know is safe.

On the drive to work, I couldn't stop thinking about the scenes at the blast sites. Anyone who's been on a Mumbai train at rush hour knows how people are squeezed in like sardines. The effects of  explosions in such cramped spaces must have been truly horrific.

The dead and injured, and their families, aren't the only ones affected. Because the train network has now been shut down, millions of commuters must be stranded, trying to get home any which way they can. And to add to their woes, it's the height of the Monsoon (the rainy season) right now.

As I grieve with other Mumbai residents (known as Mumbaikers), I'm also taking heart at the city's famously indomitable spirit. These blasts remind me of another terrorist attack in Mumbai, back in 1993, that killed a greater number of people. But the city was back on its feet again almost the next day. And so it will this time as well. As a Community, Mumbai is remarkably resilient.

Perhaps all this isn't directly related to eBay in the U.S., except to show how a Community can come together during a time of tragedy (remember the eBay Community's outpouring of support during Katrina?). But I just wanted to blog about it anyway. The eBay India office is in Mumbai, and I'm happy to report that all my eBay India colleagues are safe. Our hearts go out to the Indian members of the global eBay Community who may have been affected.

Of course, if you're involved in transactions with any eBay members based in India, bear in mind that their lives may have been disrupted by this event, and that they could be slow in shipping or paying for items, or responding to email communications.