Rains batter Rajkot, Jamnagar in Gujarat; over 200 people rescued
Extremely heavy rains lashed Rajkot and Jamnagar in Gujarat over the last 24 hours, following which more than 200 people stranded in the floodwaters were rescued and over 7,000 people shifted to safer places in the two districts, officials said. Notably, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel will visit Rajkot and Jamnagar districts later in the day to assess the situation.
National highway, 18 state highways were closed due to flooding
"A national highway in Jamnagar and 18 state highways passing through Rajkot, Jamnagar, and Junagadh districts of the Saurashtra region were closed due to flooding, affecting traffic movement. Many villages were cut off as several roads connecting them were inundated," officials said. "A bridge over river Fofal collapsed, forcing the closure of a road connecting Jam Kandorna and Gondal in Rajkot district," they added.
IAF, NDRF, Navy, SDRF were called in for rescue operations
The Indian Air Force (IAF), the Navy, and the Coast Guard were called in to help in the rescue operations along with teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) in the Rajkot and Jamnagar, officials said.
Lodhika taluka received maximum rainfall in the state
Rajkot's Lodhika taluka received the maximum rainfall of 516 mm in the state during the 24-hour period ending at 6:00 am on Tuesday, the State Emergency Operation Center (SEOC) said. Visavadar taluka in Junagadh district of Saurashtra received the second highest downpour at 468 mm, while Kalavad in Jamnagar recorded 406 mm rain, and Dhoraji in Rajkot recorded 250 mm rainfall, the SEOC said.
Mangrol taluka received 151 mm rainfall in just four hours
"On Tuesday, Mangrol taluka of Junagadh district received 151 mm rainfall in just four hours since 6:00 am, while Keshod taluka in Junagadh received 108 mm rainfall during the same period," the SEOC said.
Two SDRF teams are deployed in Gondal, Lodhika talukas: Collector
Meanwhile, Collector Arun Mahesh Babu said, "A Navy team was helping to search for two persons who are missing after their car got washed away in a strong water current in Rajkot on Monday." "Two SDRF teams are deployed in Gondal and Lodhika talukas," he said, adding that 1,467 people from rural areas and over 600 from urban areas were shifted to safer places.
150 people in Jamnagar were rescued by IAF
Moreover, officials said, "The IAF helicopters rescued 22 people stranded at some locations in Jamnagar, and 150 people in all were rescued across the district. The IAF also rescued seven villagers in Rajkot, while a total of 56 people were rescued all over the district."
35 talukas received over 100 mm rainfall in 24 hours
During the 24-hour period ending at 6:00 am on Tuesday, 35 talukas received over 100 mm rainfall, mainly in Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Gir Somnath, and Devbhumi Dwarka in Saurashtra region, and in south Gujarat's Valsad and Navsari districts, the SEOC said. Notably, Gujarat has so far received 69.24% of the average rainfall in this monsoon season.
Gujarat has received 219.2 mm rainfall this month
Meanwhile, the downpour this month has helped the state narrow its rain deficiency. This month so far, the state has received 219.2 mm rainfall, as against 65.3 mm in the entire last month, 176.7 mm in July, and 120.4 mm in June, according to SEOC.
