No let up in rain-related problems in city

No let up in rain-related problems in city

The Hindu

15 houses collapse; 15,000 people moved to safe places; basements of several apartments flooded

# Fire force personnel use inflated fibre rafts to evacuate people
# Residents of Bomanahalli-Begur stage demonstration
# Hosur Road partially closed to vehicular traffic
# Nagawara Tank overflows disrupting traffic


BANGALORE: Bommanahalli area in the city on Monday resembled Mumbai when heavy rains lashed the metropolis a few months ago, as fire force personnel used inflated fibre rafts to evacuate people from inundated houses and apartments to safe places.

Over 15,000 people were moved to safe places and were provided with food and water. Fire force vehicles were engaged in pumping out water that had entered houses in some areas.

Residents of apartments, that have mushroomed all along the areas adjoining Hosur Road, had to spend the whole of Sunday without electricity and water. Though water did not enter their houses, many residents could not come out as the basements of their apartments were flooded with waist-deep water and many of them had to be evacuated in rafts.

Demonstration

Meanwhile, irate residents of Bomanahalli-Begur staged a demonstration in front of Bommanahalli City Municipal Council office on Monday to protest against the apathy of the administration in coming to their rescue and its failure to maintain storm water drains.


Hosur Road was partially closed to vehicular traffic between Silk Board Junction and Parappana Agrahara Road Junction, and the traffic was diverted. Knee-deep water still remained in the car park areas of majority of apartments and high-rise buildings in JP Nagar, areas adjoining Bannerghatta Road and Kanakapura Road. Residents of Jayanagar VI and VII Blocks were apprehensive of a breach in the Yediyur Lake, which is overflowing since Saturday night.

Road washed away

More than 200 meters of surface of the Kanakapura Road from its junction on the Outer Ring Road towards Jaraganahalli was almost washed away.

Though road users left home early in the day to reach their offices on Hosur Road, Bannerghatta Road and other affected areas, as advised by the police, they took much longer than usual to reach their destination. Almost all main roads in the affected area witnessed bumper-to-bumper traffic moving at a snail's pace.

Traffic was disrupted on Hennur Junction to Geddalahalli Main Road for several hours due to overflowing of the Nagawara Tank. Traffic was diverted on Ullal Main Road following the collapse of a culvert on a rivulet. Strong currents of Vrishabhavathi river again washed away a portion of Mysore Road at the Junction of Outer Ring Road and Mysore Road.

While five houses collapsed in Gopalapura on Magadi Road, two houses collapsed in R.R. Lane in Kalasipalya, two houses collapsed at Viveknagar and six houses collapsed on Bannerghatta Road on Sunday night and Monday morning.