October 27, 2013 - INDIA - Flash floods swept Saturday through the eastern Indian states of
Odisha, where at least 19 people were killed, and Andhra Pradesh, where
another 21 were killed, CNN-IBN reported.
Indian rickshaw pullers carry passengers through a flooded street in Kolkata on October 26.
Indian police officials pull a boat through water-logged streets as they ferry residents to
a safer place in Kolkata on October 26.
"The flood water entered our village suddenly," one rescued villager told Reuters. "We tried to save our belongings but could not. At last we ran away to a safe place. Now the problem is we don't have food to eat and are staying under open sky."
But a local Puri government official, Madhusudhan Das, said help was under way.
People wade through a flood-damaged road on the outskirts of Hyderabad on October 26.
A villager carries an elderly man to safety after crossing floodwaters in Khurda district in the eastern Indian state of Orissa on Friday, October 25.
A resident walks through a flooded house following heavy rain in Saroornagar, a low lying area on the outskirts of Hyderabad on October 25.
Two villagers carry
their bicycles and wade through floodwaters in Banapur village in the
eastern Indian state of Orissa on October 25.
"We have arranged for dry fruits and have also taken efforts for evacuation," he said. "We have arranged free kitchen for them. Tickets will be provided to them. We will give them house damage assistance. Houses have been damaged on a large scale. We are trying our level best to finish the huge amount of work within a week and we'll also provide them assistance for house damage."
Pedestrians wade on a flooded street following heavy rain in Saroornagar on October 25.
Rescue team members from the National Disaster Response Force load a chopper with rescue equipment in the Ganjam district of the eastern Indian state of Orissa on October 25.
In all, 13 districts in Odisha were affected, P.K. Mohapatra, special relief commissioner, said in a telephone interview.
Most affected was the Ganjam District, where 85,000 people were evacuated, he said.
WATCH: Rains claim 42 lives so far in India.
"The situation is very grim as the entire Delta area is completely inundated," Guntur district Collector S Suresh Kumar told CNN's sister network. "Drains and tanks are overflowing and there is a threat of breaches occurring at some places because of the nonstop rain."
Flooding led officials to cancel the fifth of a planned series of seven One Day International cricket matches between India and Australia. - CNN.
Flood's fury in Mahanadi and other rivers has wreaked havoc in Orissa submerging about 2,600 villages spread over 19 districts and leaving eight dead as the state government today stepped up relief and rescue operations for 11 lakh affected people.
The floods, which claimed eight lives and left three others missing so far, have snapped road communications at several places in Puri, Kendrapara, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Sambalpur, Boudh and Sonepur districts, official sources said. With low lying areas submerged by flood waters, about 61,000 people have been evacuated and sheltered in safe places as government intensified relief work for about 11 lakh people in 2,600 villages of 19 districts. As 13.66 lakh cusec water flowed from the flooded Mahanadi through Mundali near Cuttack, a large number of breaches were created in the river system in the thickly populated delta region, sources said. The situation is likely to improve by tomorrow as the water level at Hirakud dam fell to 628.41 feet following reduced inflow into the reservoir, water resources department secretary Suresh Mohapatra said. With water flow into Hirakud reservoir dropping to 7.55 lakh cusec, 16 gates of the dam were closed leaving 43 open through which about 8.9 lakh cusec water was being discharged, a senior official said. Though the volume of water flow in Mahanadi and other rivers has dropped, the situation is likely to remain critical for the next two days as it would be difficult for excess water to be released into the sea due to high tide on account of full moon tomorrow, Mohapatra said. As water level at several places including Naraj, Jobra, Alipingala and Daleighai remained above the danger mark, about 11,000 houses have so far been damaged due to floods, sources said. As many as 152 relief camps with free kitchens have been opened in Angul, Balasore, Bargarh, Boudh, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Jharsuguda, Mayurbhanj, Puri, Sambalpur and Subarnapur districts. The state government has also requested the defence ministry to come to its rescue if the situation worsens, Mohapatra said, adding that 1,400 boats including 200 mechanised vessels were pressed into service. The state government has also issued directions to district collectors to close schools in their respective areas in view of the situation. About 500 weak points have been identified on river banks and embankments of which 28 are prone to breach. Engineers and experts have been camping there to keep vigil, they said. - NDTV.
