Friday, March 29, 2024
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Heavy downpour cripples Hyderabad

  • 25 persons killed in rain-related incidents
  • Power supply restored in many parts
  • Cars, autos swept away
  • Unprecedented rain in a few hours
  • TS govt. declares holiday on Thursday

With hundreds of colonies, most of them recklessly built in areas where there were ponds, wells and gardens, in Hyderabad city submerged by Wednesday morning, more than 25 persons were killed due to the unprecedented downpour. The victims included a toddler. Situation is coming back to normal as there were no rains till Thursday afternoon.

A physician in Banjara Hills who came to switch on the motor pump drowned in a cellar filled with rainwater died of electrocution, informed the police. According to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation officials, 20,540 houses in 122 localities were inundated. Some 60 relief camps have been set up accommodating 684 persons while 1.5 lakh people were given food. The State government had declared holiday on Wednesday and Thursday in view of the conditions prevailing in the city and some of the districts.

K. T. Rama Rao, Minister for Municipal Administration held an emergency meeting with officials to review the situation. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G. Kishan Reddy said one NDRE team is ready for flood assistance while two more are on their way.   

Nine members of a family were washed away in Alinagar colony. Only Mohammad Abdul Taher among them had survived. He said they were standing at the gate in front of their house when flash floods had hit them. Life had come to a standstill in the city. Rain that was expected to fall in one year had fallen in a few hours throwing normal life out of gear.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Army and the Telangana State police were on the job of rescuing the affected people of inundated localities. The highway from Hyderabad to Bengaluru was snapped on Tuesday night after water from a lake overflowed sweeping away some vehicles in the process in Gaganpahad area. Helicopters have been pressed into service to rescue people who were stranded in old city. Most of the districts in Telangana had suffered due to the heavy downpour damaging roads and standing crops such as paddy, cotton, redgram and maize in lakhs of acres. When farmers were hoping to reap bumper crop, the unprecedented rains seem to have  shattered their dreams.

City plunged into darkness

With a heavy downpour and water clogging and power off, the citizens in Hyderabad had to face a veritable hell on Tuesday evening. The city was plunged into darkness as power supply under 15 feeders got affected due to continuous heavy rain. Some of the localities in South Hyderabad remained without power even on Thursday as the Transco officials have been battling with the problem. Many trees had fallen on the wayside with the flash rains that uprooted trees which were thirty to forty years old. Electrical polls also have been damaged. The Southern Power Distribution Company officials had succeeded in partially restoring power. Chairman and Managing Director of TS-Transco and Genco, Devulapalli Prabhakar Rao has appraised Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao of the situation. He said that the power sector was on high alert and everything possible is being done to restore power supply.

For October, the Begumpet metrological office observatory in Hyderabad recorded the highest ever rainfall  of 192.1 mm on Wednesday.

10 killed in AP

Ten persons were killed in Andhra Pradesh in rain-related incidents. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy held a high-level review meeting. Prime Minister had spoken to both TS Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and AP CM Reddy. The PM had assured the CMs of central assistance.

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