Woman dies as house collapses in Gadag village

HUBBALLI: Heavy rain over the past two days in several districts of North Karnataka flooded roads and fields, destroyed crops and damaged houses. A 70-yearold woman died in Madalgeri village of Gadag district on Wednesday as her house collapsed. Some farmers and residents were stranded in Kalaburagi and Bidar respectively, as they were caught unawares by the rising water levels. Most of them have been rescued.
Heavy rain in Telangana also led to heavy water discharge into rivers.Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) said all major dams in Cauvery and Krishna basins are brimming and their floodgates were opened once again. Kalaburagi, Yadgir and Bidar were the worst hit, officials said, as small streams are in spate with many lakes overflowing and inundating villages. Vijayapura and Dharwad declared a red alert and kept rescue personnel and boats on standby. A total of 320 houses — 27 in Bidar and 63 in Yadgir — have been damaged in the past 24 hours.
Judges of the high court’s Kalaburagi bench began proceedings two hours late as they were stuck in their bungalows, just behind the court, surrounded by waist-high water. They were later taken to court in a bus.
Inflows from Chandrampalli dam into Mullamari river at Chincholi taluk in Kalaburagi increased. About 19 farmers were stuck in the fields as water levels rose; 15 were rescued on Wednesday.
Three people were rescued after they were stranded on high land in Mudgal village of Bidar taluk as Manjira river is in spate. All three have been rescued. Authorities said the situation is under control and rainfall intensity has reduced considerably.
While Bidar, Kalaburagi, received heavy to very heavy showers, parts of Yadgir, Raichur, Ballari, Vijayapura and Bagalkot recorded widespread rainfall, IMD said. The Dharwad-Savadatti road was cut off again as the bridge across Tuppari Halla near Harobelwadi was breached. Passengers of an NWKRTC bus headed for Dharwad from Savadatti had a providential escape after the driver drove through the overflowing temporary bridge across Tupparihalla.
In Vijayapura district, Hadaginahal, Kalladevanahalli, Shivapura, Haranal and Mukinal villages have turned into islands. Inflow into the Doni river has created a flood-like situation in Talikoti. A Hanuman temple has been submerged, and there is fear of flooding in Ukumanal, Sarawad and other villages.
Three days of rain led to breaching of the Dananayakana lake in Hosapete in Ballari district which has destroyed more than 50 acres of crop.
All reservoirs, lakes and streams — Bheema river, Amarja, Bhosga lake and Kaginar river — are overflowing, snapping the link between Sedam-Kalaburagi and Afzalpur-Jevargi. Bridges at Malkhed, Ganagapur and Ghattaraga are closed for traffic movement.