Eight dead in flood-hit Madhya Pradesh, IAF on rescue mission

The Indian Air Force is airlifting villagers from the flood-affected areas in Madhya Pradesh, where eight people have already died in rain-related incidents, including swollen rivers and wall collapses.

#WATCH Madhya Pradesh: People airlifted and rescued from flood-affected areas of Somalwada in Sehore by Indian Air Force pic.twitter.com/pWKJV65luB

— ANI (@ANI) August 30, 2020

A video tweeted by ANI showed a group of men, women, and children being rescued from the flood-hit areas of Somalwada in Sehore district by an IAF chopper.

#SavingLives
Today morning, #IAF launched a Mi17V5 helicopter to rescue 02 youth and an elderly man from their inundated houses near Mowad village in Balaghat,Madhya Pradesh situated along the banks of the overflowing Wainganga river.@SpokespersonMoD#IndianAirForce #AirWarriors pic.twitter.com/I7MNoHiXTN

— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) August 30, 2020

Another video, tweeted by the IAF, showed a Mi17V5 helicopter rescuing two youth and an elderly man being rescued from their inundated houses near Mowad village in Balaghat district, situated along the banks of the overflowing Wainganga river, on Sunday morning.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday said efforts are currently underway to evacuate nearly 1,200 people stranded in 40 flooded villages of the state. He said, in the last two days, over 7,000 people stranded in 454 villages of 12 districts were evacuated as heavy rains battered the state.

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“Eight people have died in wall collapses and swollen nullahs so far,” said Chouhan after he informed Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the flood situation in the state.

Efforts were underway on a war-footing to evacuate 1,200 people stranded in 40 villages of the state, he said. As of now, 9,300 people are staying in 170 relief camps in the state, the chief minister said.

Three helicopters of the Indian Air Force have been pressed into service to airlift stranded people and two more have been sought, he said. The Army (a column of 70 personnel) is already working and has evacuated people from flood-affected areas in Hoshangabad. He said more columns of the military have been requisitioned.

Heavy rainfall is expected in Indore, Ujjain, Shajapur, Ratlam, Dewas, Jhabua, Alirajpur, Mandsaur and Neemuch in the next 24 hours. Authorities in these districts have been alerted, the chief minister said.

Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department Bhopal centre’s senior meteorologist PK Saha said a well-marked low-pressure area causing rains in the state has advanced over west Madhya Pradesh and (adjoining) eastern Rajasthan. It is likely to shift to Rajasthan by 7 pm or 8 pm, he added.

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