AP flood death toll goes up to 41

AP flood death toll goes up to 41

12 Deaths Reported On Sunday; Several Towns Still Remain Under Water

Sandeep.Raghavan@timesgroup.com

Tirupati: 22.11.2021

The flood situation in Andhra Pradesh continued to be grim with arterial roads cut off even as the toll increased to 41 with 12 more deaths reported on Sunday.

Train and bus services remained affected while many villages and towns in Rayalaseema and Nellore district remained under water.

Streams, rivulets and village tanks were full to the brim and a few of them were overflowing causing concern to people living in lowlying areas.

On Sunday, six more bodies were retrieved in Rajampet mandal and two bodies in Chinnamandem mandal of Kadapa district, while four deaths were reported in Nellore district. Officials said 15 bodies were handed over to the families. Three unidentified bodies are lying at Rajampet government hospital in Kadapa district. Two siblings, including a woman, who tried to cross over Mandavya river in Chinnamandem mandal, were washed away in the strong currents and their bodies were retrieved near Vandadi village.

While two, including a constable, have been reported dead in Nellore district, two unidentified bodies were retrieved near Somasila project on Sunday. Officials in Nellore have evacuated 44,275 people from low-lying areas and shifted them to 92 relief camps.

The road bridge connecting Kadapa-Tadipatri towns along the Papagni river collapsed due to the impact of flood in the early hours on Sunday. Road connectivity to several villages along the route remained suspended.

Meanwhile, a threestorey building came crashing down at Kadapa town in the early hours of Sunday. Police and firefighting personnel rescued a man and a woman.

Rail and road connectivity to the temple city of Tirupati remained cut off with the closure of Kadapa-Tirupati highway, Nellore-Tirupati highway, and Bengaluru-Tirupati highway. Also, Tiruttani-Tirupati highway was closed. South Central Railway cancelled 42 trains, partially cancelled one train and diverted 3 trains along Nellore-Padugupadu section of Vijayawada division and Rajampet-Nandalur of Guntakal division on Sunday.

Nearly 2,000 devotees, who boarded the Tirumala Express to reach Tirupati, were dropped off at Kadapa railway station, sparking off protests. Officials later arranged special buses and shifted them to Tirupati.

THROWING LIFE OUT OF GEAR: Children swimming in a flooded street in Tirupati on Sunday. Traffic along the national highway 16 connecting Kolkata with Chennai via Andhra Pradesh came to a halt after the road caved in at two places near Nellore on Sunday