Hurricane Irene has just claimed a Bollywood captive. Minissha Lamba who arrived in New York two days ago for an Indo-US cultural event is stuck on the 22nd floor of the Hotel Radisson in New York. She's likely to be stranded in her room in New York for the next week until the Hurricane blows over and air services from out of the US are restored.
For the next 36 hours, Minissha is under 'hotel curfew'. Speaking on Sunday morning from her hotel room in New York, the actress said, "It's really really scary out here. For 36 hours the entire New York is going to have to stay indoors. A state of emergency has been declared. Everyone is in their homes. As I look out of my hotel window I see a deserted street down below, Can you imagine New York without traffic? It's like a scene out of Armageddon."
Trying to suppress her hysteria, Minissha says, "I am all alone here. My stay has been extended for a week. I had no choice. The airports are shut. All flights are cancelled. Half of New York, New Jersey, Staten Island have been evacuated. I can't return."
Ominously, Minissha had been getting warning calls during the week that she was to leave for New York, ordering her to cancel her trip. "Now I wonder if the caller had a premonition and was trying to warn me from travelling into catastrophe. I hope I can return the soonest possible. Maybe I should just enjoy Irene's company. She's my first hurricane. I believe first hurricanes are like first love. You never forget it."
