VIJAYAWADA: An 11-year-old girl is feared drowned in floodwater at Lakshmaiah Vagu in Chevitikallu village of Kanchikacherla mandal in Krishna district on Friday evening.
NDRF teams are searching for the girl, who is yet to be traced.
Lakshmaiah Vagu is a small stream that joins Krishna river at Chevitikallu located upstream of Prakasam Barrage. It swelled with floodwater following heavy inflows into Krishna river.
The girl identified as P Gauthami Priya, her father P Ramesh and twin sister Lakshmi Priya were crossing the stream in a small country boat along with three more people to escape from floods in their village and go to her grandparents’ house on the other side of the stream when the mishap occurred.
When the boat was in the middle of the stream, a herd of buffaloes, which were swimming to safety, collided with the boat, which tilted to a side.
When the twin sisters started falling from the boat, their father caught hold of Lakshmi Priya, while Gauthami Priya slipped.
Even as he was crying for help, his daughter drowned in the floodwater. National Disaster Response Force teams deployed nearby swung into action and took up search and rescue operations.
Over 800 houses marooned in Krishna, Guntur
District Collector A Md Imtiaz told media persons that the country boat was used by the villagers to cross the stream. On Thursday, one Rathnam died of cardiac arrest in the village and people came to attend his last rites but were stranded with the flood level in the stream increasing 6-7 ft. “Though the capacity of the boat is four, more people had boarded it to cross the stream,” he explained.
Except for the boat mishap, no casualties were reported in Krishna and Guntur districts due to floods.
Several low-lying areas in Vijayawada and other places downstream and upstream of Prakasam Barrage in both the districts were inundated in floodwater of Krishna river.
Following heavy inflows, all 70 gates of Prakasam Barrage were lifted to let out the floodwater into the sea and various canals. At 7 pm, flood discharge was 7,85,918 cusecs with inflows at 7,57,005 cusecs. The flood level is expected to increase further and touch 8 lakh cusecs mark by Friday midnight.
Authorities issued the second flood warning in the early hours of Friday, which is expected to continue for another 24 hours. Vehicular traffic on Prakasam Barrage was stopped as a precautionary measure. “Though we are allowing two-wheelers in a limited number, we will stop them if the flood discharge increases further,” said Vijayawada City Police Commissioner Ch Dwaraka Tirumala Rao.
He said additional police personnel were deployed at the barrage to discourage visitors, who are flocking to see the floodwater being discharged.
People are also being urged not to take selfies at the barrage. As the side railing of the barrage at the 24th and 39th pillars suffered damage after being hit by a lorry, a mesh is being erected along the barrage as a precautionary measure.
Several colonies in Krishnalanka, Ranigari Thota and Ramalingeswara Nagar in Vijayawada located downstream of Prakasam Barrage, Ferry ghat in Ibrahimpatnam where Pavitra Sangamam is located upstream of the barrage were inundated.
It is feared that if the flood flow increases further, it may inundate the roads in Ibrahimpatnam as well. The Krishna district administration is evacuating people from flood-hit Mopidevi, Kokkliggadda, Kothapalem and Bobbarlanka and other places.
On the other hand, several villages along the course of the Krishna river in Guntur district were also inundated. Pedda Madduru village in Amaravathi Mandal was inundated.
Traffic was stopped on the road between Amaravati and Vijayawada as a precautionary measure. According to AP State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA), a total of 8,100 people in 24 villages of 18 mandals in Krishna, 3,453 people in 53 villages of 14 mandals in Guntur district were affected. So far, 41 relief camps have been organised in Krishna while eight such camps have been set up in Guntur district.
As per the preliminary report, 160 houses in Krishna district were damaged while 315 houses were marooned. In Guntur district, as many as 537 houses were marooned.
Agriculture crops in 935 hectares and horticulture crops in 791 hectares were submerged in floodwater in Krishna district, while agriculture crops in 678 hectares and horticulture crops in 654 acres in Guntur were inundated.
About 20 hectares of mulberry crop was also submerged in Krishna district. About 120 NDRF and 84 fire service personnel are involved in flood relief works in Krishna and 60 NDRF and 28 fire service personnel in Guntur district.
The water level in Godavari river at Polavaram project increased with heavy inflows from Pranahita. Road connectivity to 19 villages in Polavaram and several other villages in Velerupadu mandal of West Godavari district and Devipatnam mandal of East Godavari district is again cut off.