VISAKHAPATNAM: The officials and staff of Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority (VUDA), as per the directions of its incharge vice-chairman MV Seshagiri Babu, have formed into 27 teams and are cleaning up uprooted trees, branches and debris at all tourist locations under the VUDA jurisdiction by engaging heavy machinery and skilled labourers so that these tourism places can limp back to normalcy in the next two days.
Works are underway at Kailasagiri, VUDA Park, YSR Park, Tenneti Park, Thotlakonda, Kailasagiri Health Arena, MVP Nursery, Biodiversity Park at RCD Hospital, KGH, Pandurangapuram Park, Collector Camp Office, Government Circuit House and other areas where the VUDA is maintaining the greenery and parks.
As many as 4,100 trees were uprooted and another 9,250 trees were partially damaged at all the VUDA tourist destinations under the impact of cyclone Hudhud. Following this, VUDA officials deployed 25 JCBs and 65 tippers along with pruning saws to clear up the fallen trees and trim the surviving ones. Toddy workers were brought from rural areas of East Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts to prune up the coconut and palm trees.
The debris and fallen trees collected from Kailasagiri, VUDA Park, Thotlakonda, Tenneti Park and other places were dumped at the open space available in VUDA Park. On Sunday, the volunteers of Lions Club and other NGOs cleaned up the VUDA Park.
However, the iconic Kailasagiri Hill Park witnessed devastation on a large scale as most of the trees and electrical poles atop the hill were razed to the ground.
