Godavari rising at Bhadrachalam, likely to cross third warning level

The water level in river Godavari is rising and has crossed the second warning level at Bhadrachalam in the district

Kothagudem: The water level in river Godavari is rising and has crossed the second warning level at Bhadrachalam in the district on Friday.

The water level was 52.10 feet at 7 pm with a discharge of 13.85 lakh cusecs. The water level was expected to rise further and was likely to reach 60 feet by midnight, informed district Collector Dr. Priyanka Ala, who along with special flood relief officer Anudeep Durishetty held a meeting at Bhadrachalam with flood duty officers to review the relief measures.

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Dr. Ala said three NDRF teams and one Indian Air Force helicopter were available to carry out rescue operations. As many as 4900 persons of over 1523 families from 30 revenue villages and 45 habitations have been shifted to 22 relief camps across the district on Friday.

The flood flow was increasing and the public in flood prone villages were alerted. Officers on flood relief duty were put on high alert to address any emergency in view of the increasing flood flow.

Transportation was restricted in nine low-lying areas where water has stood on the roads and transport services would be restored by Saturday. Vehicular movement on highways was allowed, the Collector said.

Check dam on Kinnerasani collapses

A check dam built across Kinnerasani stream at Nagaram in Paloncha mandal two years ago was damaged due to floods. Several bridges and culverts were also damaged at different villages in the district disrupting vehicular movements.

Respite from rain

In Kothagudem district, there was no rain in six mandals while the other mandals received very light to moderate rainfall on Friday. In Khammam district, there was no rain in two mandals while the other mandals received very light to light rain on Friday.

At 6 pm, 15 gates of Taliperu project in Cherla mandal were lifted for free flow discharge of 15,982 cusecs of excess water.