A flood-like situation erupted in Gujarat’s Saurashtra region after heavy rains brought daily lives in cities to a standstill and isolated smaller villages. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a ‘red’ alert for Junagadh, Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Kutch, Surat, Valsad, Navsari and Surat. Meanwhile, an ‘orange’ alert has been issued for several areas in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, Thane, Raigad, and Ratnagiri, and a ‘red alert’ in Palghar district.
Dozens of parked cars and cattle were swept away in the gushing floodwater in Junagarh while people were seen wading through waist-deep water to leave their inundated homes and shift to safer places. The city received 241 mm of rainfall in just 12 hours till 8 pm on Saturday, prompting authorities to evacuate people from low-lying areas.
Other parts of Gujarat also faced waterlogging and traffic congestion due to the rains.
Two companies of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were deployed in Junagadh and a third team was also being dispatched, as per PTI. The SDRF (State Disaster Response Force) also allocated two teams, along with five fire response teams of Rajkot municipal corporation and its adjoining Gondal municipality to carry out rescue operations.
A father-son duo drowned after their car got washed away near Silvassa town of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, the Union Territory adjoining Gujarat. The two were caught by fast-moving waters on Friday night when they were trying to cross over a low-lying bridge. Another man and his son were swept away in a swollen drain in Navsari in Gujarat. While the man was rescued, efforts were underway to trace the son, an official told PTI.
On the other hand, Mumbai is experiencing relentless rainfall for the past two to three days leading to traffic jams, waterlogging in major areas and delayed service of local trains. In Raigad, the local administration imposed prohibitory orders under section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) on Saturday after 27 people died in a landslide in Irshalwadi.
Heavy rains lashed Akola in Maharashtra's Vidarbha region with the district recording more than 100 mm downpour in the last one day.
Villages in Shahapur, Bhiwandi, and Vasai talukas in Thane and Palghar districts of Maharashtra were also put on alert in view of the possible discharge of water from the Tansa dam. Bhiwandi witnessed severe waterlogging causing many vehicles to get partially submerged. Yavatmal, which received 240 mm of rain on Saturday, too suffered widespread damage.
The weather department has warned of the possibility of heavy rains in Amravati district of Maharashtra, while cloudy weather is likely to prevail in other parts of Vidarbha. Heavy to very heavy rainfall is also likely to continue in other districts of south Gujarat and Saurashtra-Kutch over the next three days, the IMD said.
The Met department has warned fishermen to not venture along and off the north Gujarat coast from July 22 to July 26 saying squally weather conditions were very likely to prevail during this period.
