Odisha: Heavy rain hits over 7,300 in Malkangiri; roads, bridges flooded

Heavy rain has lashed several districts of Odisha over the past three days due to the impact of a depression over the Bay of Bengal, affecting more than 7,300 people in Malkangiri alone.

According to an official statement released on Sunday (July 21), the districts of Nabaranghpur, Koraput, Khurda, Nayagarh, and Malkangiri received heavy rainfall on July 19 under the impact of the depression.

Similarly, on July 20, Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, and Nabarangpur districts received heavy rain, while Nuapada, Sonepur, Boudh, Malkangiri, Bolangir and Angul received heavy rain on July 21.

Roads, bridges submerged

Due to the heavy rain, several roads and bridges in Malkangiri district were submerged, the office of the Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) said in its statement.

The SRC has asked the Malkangiri collector to prohibit the movement of vehicles on submerged roads and bridges till the water recedes.

The local police and local officials have been instructed to be at those sites to regulate traffic.

Relief camps

The SRC office said 1,045 villages under 111 panchayats in the district were affected, and the local administration has so far evacuated 121 people from the low-lying areas to safe shelter homes.

Three relief camps have been opened in the districts to provide food and shelter to affected persons. The water is receding, and normalcy is being restored, it said.

Damage to public and private properties shall be enumerated immediately after the water recedes, the statement said.

Healthcare measures

The emergency operation centres at the state and district level are functioning 24/7 in three shifts and monitoring the situation, it said.

Furthermore, the SRC has instructed the health department to store anti-snake venoms at the public hospitals, while the energy department was asked to restore the power supply.

He also instructed the departments concerned to disinfect tubewells and restore affected roads and bridges in the rain-hit areas.

Depression moves

Since Saturday, Nuapada district has received an average rainfall of 96.1 mm, followed by Sonepur (73.6mm) and Boudh (66.5mm).

The highest rainfall of 154.4mm was recorded in the Athmallik block of Angul district.

The depression has now weakened into a well-marked low-pressure area and lay over interior Odisha and adjoining Chhattisgarh at 8.30 am on Sunday.

It is likely to move towards Chhattisgarh and weaken gradually into a low-pressure area, the IMD said in a bulletin.

Under its impact, heavy rainfall (7 to 11cm) would occur at some places over the districts of Nuapada, Bolangir, Sonepur, Boudh, Bargarh, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi, Koraput, and Malkangiri on Sunday.

(With agency inputs)