Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Pradeep Kumar Jena on Thursday said low to medium floods in the Mahanadi system are expected as the upper catchment areas in Chhattisgarh have been receiving heavy rains due to the depression which crossed Odisha on Tuesday.
As per the information of the Water Resources Department, 8 lakh cusecs of water is expected to flow through Mundali barrage of Mahanadi between morning and noon on Saturday. The peak flood would pass through Kendrapada and Puri districts on Saturday evening and night. “We have alerted the district administrations,” the SRC said.“The floods will not have any major impact if embankments are strong enough. Officials have been asked to keep a close vigil and patrolling has already started,” Jena said.
He further informed that as precautionary measures, 30 ODRAF teams, 12 NDRF teams and 10 Fire Services teams have been mobilised to Baleswar, Bhadrak, Kendrapada, Jajpur, Cuttack and Puri. “We also appeal to people living in riverside villages and near embankments to help the administration,” Jena said. Sharing the latest data regarding human casualties during the rains, he said nine persons have died, three in Kendrapada district, two in Jajpur and one each in Khordha, Ganjam, Keonjhar and Subarnapur.
Incessant rains in the upper catchment of Hirakud Dam and heavy inflow of water into the reservoir have triggered flood fear among the residents of Sambalpur town also.
In the Mahanadi system, 6.38 lakh cusecs of water was flowing at Khairmal while its volume was 4.64 lakh cusecs at Barmul and 5.96 lakh cusecs at Mundali near Cuttack, officials said. Water Resources Department officials have been monitoring the water levels of the Mahanadi and its tributaries including Brahmani, Baitarani and Subarnarekha.
Flood s have already wreaked havoc in Jajpur district causing large-scale devastation in Dasarathpur, Korei, Bari , Binjharpur and Dharmasala blocks and thousands of people have been affected.
In Kendrapada district, hundreds of villages have been affected due to rains and floods in the Brahmani river system. Three road beaches have occurred disrupting communication. In several villages, floodwaters are flowing above three feet high.