VIJAYAWADA/GUNTUR: Heavy rains over the past two days have wreaked havoc across the undivided Krishna and Guntur districts. Several low-lying areas in Vijayawada city and its suburbs have submerged with overflowing streams and canals, even though rains have abated.
With floodwaters inundating roads and homes, residents find themselves facing severe inconvenience and are grappling with a crisis at hand.
Bunds of overflowing Budameru stream were breached, leading to flooding in Vijayawada city including Sundaraiah Nagar, Rajiv Nagar, Prakash Nagar, Kandrika, Gollapudi, Singhnagar, Payakapuram, and Nunna areas. The fire department colony in Nunna has also been submerged. Residents express fear as snakes have been spotted entering homes.
“It is like a nightmare. In the morning we woke up to see our apartments and surrounding houses inundated. We have shifted people from the ground floor to higher floors. Power connectivity was also interrupted,” observed Naresh, a resident of Gollapudi.
Following heavy downpours on August 30 and August 31, part of Ghat Road leading Goddess Kanaka Durga temple atop Indrakeeladir in Vijayawada collapsed. Authorities have blocked the entire area
The four buses that were submerged near the Pandit Nehru bus station were retrieved with the help of cranes on September 1. The Vijayawada-Hyderabad road has been restored after officials pumped floodwater from the railway underpass into the Krishna River.
The South Central Railway has cancelled about 30 trains on the Vijayawada-Hyderabad route due to waterlogging on the tracks, further complicating the situation for travellers. The AP Express was diverted and the Vandebharat train from Visakhapatnam to Secundrabad has been canceled. With rainwater flowing on the railway track at Rayanapadu, Tamil Nadu Express was detained. Heavy rains have affected power production at Vijayawada Thermal Power Station, as coal was completely drenched.
As of Sunday morning, Prakasam Barrage recorded a surplus of 6,96,178 cusecs, with all 70 gates fully open. The second danger alert is in force. Several people living downstream of the Prakasam Barrage have been put on alert. A flood alert has been sounded in Avanigadda and other regions, with heavy inflows from the Krishna River into the sea.
Municipal Minister P. Narayana along with MP Kesineni Sivanath, and MLA Bonda Umamaheswara Rao toured Vijayawada to assess the situation and ensure relief measures are in place. Authorities continue to monitor the situation closely to protect public safety.
In the NTR district, water bodies including Katleru, Budameru, Vagaleru, Pamula, Edulla, Vipla, and Padamati canals are overflowing leading to flooding in the regions abutting them. Breach of the Nawabpet tank in Pebuganchiprolu mandal has severely disrupted traffic, while Gampalagudem Mandal's Nallacheruvu and Chandralapadu Mandal's Enugugadda streams have similarly overflowed, isolating several villages.
In Ibrahimpatnam Mandal, heavy rains have exacerbated the situation, leaving communities waiting for government intervention. Farmers in Challapalli Mandal of Krishna District are particularly concerned as floodwaters have reached more than five feet into the fields, threatening crops.
Meanwhile, following heavy rainfall that lashed several parts of the Guntur district, road connectivity to several villages was cut off by overflowing water bodies. Guntur-Amaravati Road and Amaravathi-Vijayawada Road were completely inundated due to the overflowing Kondavagu Lake.
Kottellu Lake and Nakkavagu flooding also cut off road connectivity in Thulluru, Prathipadi, and Gottipadu villages. The continuous rainfall is hindering relief operations in the villages. Due to heavy rainfall in Mangalagiri, the highway near Kaza Tollplaza was inundated with rainwater causing huge distress to commuters.
Guntur SP Sathish Kumar and police officials tirelessly worked overnight to divert water from flooded roads into canals and restore the vehicular traffic on the highway. GMC officials drained out water from major roads to facilitate the commuters. Several people in low-lying areas in Guntur East constituency were shifted to seven rehabilitation centers.
