KADAPA/KURNOOL: The six members of a family from Proddatur, who have washed away along with the auto in which they were travelling, are yet to be traced. What came as more shocking for the police, who initially thought that there were only three persons in the auto, was that the entire family of six was washed away in the floodwater of Kundu river near Radha Nagar in Proddatur Mandal.
According to the police, the family of auto driver M Ramanjaneyulu (30) of SC Colony in Potladurthi village in Yerraguntla Mandal went to relatives’ place in Duvvur Mandal on Monday to attend a function. Ramanjaneyulu, along with his mother Subbamma (50), wife Penchalamma (23), daughters Anjali (4) and Meghana (3) and 9-month-old son, was returning to his village when the auto stuck at a culvert at Radha Nagar.
“Ramanjaneyulu waited for some time for the floodwater flow to subside. Later, he went ahead even as the locals warned them not to take a risk,’’ police said. The gushing water swept away the auto along with the occupants even as the villagers watched helplessly.
Meanwhile, rains continue to batter Kurnool district, but they brought some cheer to the drought-hit areas of Adoni and Kurnool revenue divisions. The floodwater in Allagadda, Gospadu, Mahanandi, Sirivella, Koilakuntla and Chagalamarri mandals in Nandyal division receded on Wednesday.
District Collector G Veerapandian, SP K Fakeerappa and Joint Collector P Ravisubhash visited the flood-affected areas in Nandyal division to assess the damage. As the floodwater receded at Mahanandi temple, devotees were allowed for darshan. About 55 villages in the division were flooded.
According to a preliminary estimate, standing crops in 40,000 hectares were damaged.
Crocodile scare in Nandyal
Meanwhile, a section of the media reported that a crocodile entered Nandyal town, causing panic among people. After inspecting the spot, police officials said there was no truth in the news report and the video shown in the media was from some other place. No crocodile entered Nandyal town, SP Fakeerappa clarified.