BELAGAVI/HUBBALLI: In a nightmarish replay of the heavy rains in August-September, the North Karnataka region, which had barely time to recover from the devastating floods, bore the brunt of the northeast monsoon on Sunday night and Monday. Three people lost their lives. In the last rains, 92 people died in the state, with 32 being from Belagavi district.
Many areas in Belagavi, Hubballi, Koppal, Gadag and Ballari districts were lashed by rains, resulting in floods yet again, disrupting life. Videos of motorists driving through inundated streets and a bus stuck after a road caved in, damaged homes in these areas flooded social media platforms on Monday.
The forecast is rather gloomy. The weatherman has issued red and orange alert for the state for the next five days. Low pressure areas have formed over Arabian Sea, which will gradually become a depression.
“Just a month ago we were displaced by floods and we lost our homes. And before we could start a new life, the rains have revisited us. Our houses are flooded once again and none of us slept on Sunday night,” said Ravi Chintal, a resident of Ron in Gadag.
The scene in Belagavi and Dharwad districts is equally grim. In Belagavi district, rain claimed two lives, damaged several houses and standing crops and affected traffic on the busy Bengaluru-Pune NH. Belagavi Deputy Commissioner S B Bommanhalli said the State Disaster Rescue Force (SDRF) teams have been sent to Ramdurg. “We have asked the central government to send three NDRF teams as well. Two shelter houses have been set up in Ramdurg,” he said.
In Dharwad, several houses collapsed in Hubballi and other parts of the district. Ten staffers of a bridge constructing company who were stranded near Hubballi were rescued. In Koppal, the body of an unidentified person was found in an overflowing lake.