Godavari in spate at Bhadrachalam, swollen streams disrupt road links
BHADRADRI KOTHAGUDEM The Godavari remained in spate, flowing above the third flood warning level at Bhadrachalam till late on Saturday evening, following heavy inflows from
BHADRADRI KOTHAGUDEM The Godavari remained in spate, flowing above the third flood warning level at Bhadrachalam till late on Saturday evening, following heavy inflows from the upper reaches. The third flood warning remained in force at Bhadrachalam with the river flowing at around 55 feet, nearly two feet above the third warning level of 53 feet, when reports last came in. About 15.34 lakh cusecs of water was flowing downstream at Bhadrachalam at that time.
The rising river level prompted the authorities to intensify vigil in low-lying and riverside areas of Bhadradri Kothagudem district. The Godavari crossed the third warning level at 12.15 a.m. on Saturday following which officials stepped up monitoring in vulnerable areas and remained on alert to undertake relief and rescue operations. Traffic movement on the Bhadrachalam-Charla and Bhadrachalam-Kunavaram main roads was disrupted after streams overflowed onto causeways at Turubaka, Alubaka and several other stretches.
This disrupted road connectivity to several interior tribal habitations in the Bhadrachalam Agency. Inter-State Road connectivity between Telangana and Chhattisgarh was also disrupted due to the swelling streams. According to sources, a pregnant woman was carried on a makeshift raft from Bhattilagumpu to Ramnagar in Aswapuram mandal after floodwaters surrounded the village. She was shifted by an ambulance to a health centre from the nearest accessible road point, sources said.
Residents of the double-bed room housing colony at Gangolu and other riverside habitations in Dummugudem mandal were shifted to a relief centre set up at Pragallapalli village as a precautionary measure. Authorities have also been monitoring the Godavari water level at Parnashala, a famous pilgrim centre in Dummugudem mandal, where floodwaters submerged the bathing ghats.
The BriefWire