Telangana's Kamareddy, Medak receive highest rainfall in 50 years

Hyderabad, Aug 28 (IANS) Kamareddy and Medak districts of Telangana received the highest rainfall in the last 50 years, state government officials said on Thursday.

The two districts witnessed unprecedented rain during the last 24 hours, triggering flash floods.

While Argonda station at Rajampet mandal in Kamareddy received 44 cm of rain, a total of 23 locations received more than 20 cm of rainfall. These include 10 stations in Kamareddy, four in Nirmal, six in Medak and the remaining in Nizamabad and Siddipet.

This has been the heaviest downpour in such a short span in the last 50 years.

A total of 15 State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams and five National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams are engaged in rescue and relief operations in the affected districts. In addition, about 100 Army personnel from the TASA unit Hyderabad are engaged in rescue and relief in Medak District.

Due to heavy rainfall in Kamareddy district, six mandals have been severely affected by floods, namely Kamareddy, Bibipet, Rajampet, Nizamsagar, Yellareddy, and Machareddy. With the coordination of all concerned departments, more than 500 people have been rescued so far.

State Disaster Response Force team rescued nine workers at Boggu Gudise and another five people at Gunkal Village. A person died in a wall collapse. A car with two people got washed in Neelakatta vagu Domakonda.

The railway track has caved in at Rameshwarpally in Bhiknoor mandal, forcing authorities to stop train movement until further orders. In Kamareddy town, the Housing Board Colony, GR Colony, Teachers Colony, and Sarampally ST Residential School areas are among the worst affected.

The officials said food and other essential supplies are being provided to the affected people.

Rescue operations were on with the help of SDRF and NDRF teams. Evacuation operation is going on in the affected villagers of Nizamsagar and Pocharam dams.

Hyderabad-Nagpur National Highway (NH44) caved in at least three places, and as a result, vehicles in both directions have been diverted.

Haveli Ghanpur, Papannapet, Ramayampet, Shankarampet (A) and Nizampet are the worst-affected mandals in Medak.

According to the officials, water is overflowing on 47 roads, 23 culverts/causeways and 15 bridges, where traffic on either side has been blocked by barricading, and Joint teams from Police, Revenue and Panchayat are monitoring these places. At 16 places, tanks have breached, and all the affected villages have been alerted and are under constant vigil.

NDRF and SDRF teams have successfully rescued five persons stranded at the Animal Birth Control Centre at Medak Municipal dump yard.

One person was stranded on the top of a car near Nakkavagu, surrounded by water from all sides. The NDRF Team has successfully rescued him.

Around 11 people stranded on the Wadi Bridge have been successfully rescued. A total of 350 SC Women's degree college students were rescued and shifted to a safe place in Ramayampet. Another 80 students from Ramayampet SC girls' hostel were rescued and shifted to a safe place.

Around 53 families of people from low-lying areas in Ramayampet and Medak Municipalities and other places have been rescued and shifted to Rehabilitation centres. Around 375 members from Sardhana Village, which may be affected by flows from the Pocharam project, have been shifted to rehabilitation camps arranged at Medak Municipality as a precautionary measure.

Two people, while trying to cross the Rajpet bridge, were swept away due to the heavy flow of the Gandari Vagu. A large extent of the agricultural fields in the district has been inundated. A detailed assessment of crop damage is being done.

Roads, culverts, causeways and bridges were damaged at 85 locations. The railway track at Shamnapur on the Akkanpet- Ramayampet line was damaged, and trains on this line have been cancelled.

--IANS

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