i-FAMS

Heavy rains over the last 24 hours in the catchment areas of Brahmani river and release of flood water from Mandira dam of Rourkela Steel Plant flooded low lying areas on Monday morning. Flood water entered Balughat submerging 11 houses located along the riverside while parts of low-lying Dandiapali, Biswakarma Bihar and some pockets near the Vedvyas temple complex were severely waterlogged. In the morning, Brahmani was swelling menacingly and the Saraswati Kund of Vedvyas temple was submerged.

Days of heavy rain, rising rivers and dam releases have caused widespread flooding in the state of Odisha in eastern India, 26 districts affected. Many parts of Odisha experienced heavy rainfall from around 13 September, brought by a Low Pressure Area over the Bay of Bengal. In a 24 hour period to 13 September, Puri recorded 343 mm of rain, Bhubaneswar 200 mm. The following day the heavy rain moved to further inland where Angul recorded 221 mm. From 14 to 15 September Sundergarh recorded 116 mm of rain. The rain caused several rivers in the state to swell or break their banks

The apprehension of high floods in different rivers of Odisha proved authentic on Sunday as at least 32 breaches occurred in major river systems in the state. Majority of the breaches were reported in the Brahmani river system in Jajpur district. The high flood in Odisha, according to official sources, had by Sunday evening destroyed at least 8 lakh hectares of farmland and left as many as 16 people dead.