SANGUEM/MARGAO/CANACONA/BICHOLIM/MAPUSA
A man was rescued from the Kushawati river at Quepem, while water entered many houses in Mirabag-Sanvordem, as rains continued to strike with full fury in Quepem, Sanvordem and Curchorem on Tuesday.
According to reports, the 30-year-old man accidentally slipped into Kushawati river but managed to cling on to the branch of a tree. A firefighter, Dharmendra Naik, attached to the Curchorem Fire Services, later rescued the man from the river.
At Paroda, the main road proceeding to Margao from Quepem remained submerged throughout the day. As the Kushawati River began to swell, traffic along the Quepem-Margao route was diverted via Chandor.
People were kept on their toes after water from the nearby nullah started entering their houses at Mirabag-Sanvordem.
Villagers bitterly complained about the panchayat’s failure to clean the nullah prior to the monsoon, which caused the nullah to overflow and water to enter their houses.
A truck parked by the side of the main road fell into the nullah after the mud caved in.
At most places in Sanvordem and Quepem areas, waterlogging was a major problem and the situation is likely to worsen if rains continue to lash for another day.
Margao-Quepem
road submerged
Incessant rains continued to disrupt normal life in the Margao and the Salcete countryside for the second day on Tuesday.
As usual, the main Margao-Quepem road was submerged under water at Paroda since morning, forcing the authorities to stop and divert traffic. Warning boards were erected on both sides of the road at Paroda.
Local residents lamented that though Paroda has been witnessing this perennial problem over the years, the government has done nothing to work out a permanent solution.
Elsewhere, the Margao fire brigade was literally on its toes attending to a host of rescue falls, attending to a number of calls relating to uprooted trees.
The fire brigade rushed to Malbhat on Tuesday evening after receiving a call that a huge tree has come crashing on a house.
Minor landslide on
NH66 at Gulem
A minor landslide on the NH66 highway, flooding of roads and an uprooted tree blocking an internal road were reported in Canacona taluka, as heavy rains continued for the third day on Tuesday.
Approximately 5 inches of rain was already recorded till 4 pm on Tuesday, with the seasonal rainfall have crossed 1289 mm. All three rivers at Saleri, Galgibaga and Talpona also rose sharply and water storage at the Chapoli dam rose considerably at 34.52 mtrs (RL).
Many roads were flooded especially in and around Chaudi town, as most roadside drains were clogged with accumulation of silt.
A tree uprooted and collapsed on the road at Ambeaghat, blocking the road from Gaondongrim to Neturlim, Fire services personnel rushed to clear the tree and were still at the site till late Tuesday evening.
A landslide took place at Gulem-Canacona, bringing mud on the NH-66 highway but the incident did not lead to any disruption in traffic.
Many paddy fields which were freshly prepared with seedlings were inundated as water gushed into the fields.
Heavy rains are, however, considered a blessing for chilli cultivation and transplantation of chilly saplings was recently carried out in the hillocks.
House collapses, one
damaged in Bicholim
One house collapsed and another house was damaged due to heavy rains in Bicholim on Tuesday.
Bicholim Mamlatdar Laxmikant Kuttikar informed that Vasanti Chodankar's mud house in Marmawada-Narve collapsed, leaving the family homeless. In another incident, the wall of Leela Velgekar's house collapsed in Gaonwada-Velguem. The mamlatdar said those families who have been rendered homeless due to the destruction of their houses will be shifted to safer places.
Due to heavy rains, the Anjunem Dam received 85mm of rain on Monday and the water level rose to 70.82 meters on Tuesday.
There are possibilities that the dam could fill in a few days due to the rapid rise in water level. The capacity of this dam is 93.47 metres and water is released when the level reaches 90 metres.
The Tillari Dam has 272.666 million cubic meters of water, which is 60 percent of the water level. At present, the Tillari river water level has reached up to 38.2 metres, while the danger level is 43.6 metres.
Bicholim Mamlatdar Laxmikant Kuttikar along with Water Resources Officer Naresh Pokle, Siddharth Shirodkar and Talathi Sahadev Mote reviewed the situation at Chapora river in Sal village. The pumping station was also inspected.
"We are monitoring the situation round the clock and at present, there is no risk of flooding," said Kuttikar.
Due to heavy rains, there is danger in areas like Lamgao, Shirgao, Poira, Sanquelim, Sirsaim Velguem, Pale, Kudne, Pissurle and surrounding areas.
Tree falling, water
logging in Bardez
For the second day on the trot, heavy rains disrupted life in Bardez with complaints of water logging and tree falling coming from different parts of the taluka.
A huge mango tree came crashing down on a car at Orda in Candolim. The locals rushed to rescue the driver who was trapped in the car. In another incident a tree fell on the garage and compound wall at Umtavaddo, Calangute. Pilerne fire station personnel were on their toes in clearing the trees.
In a tree falling incident on a house at Khorlim, Mapusa the family suffered a loss of around Rs 20,000.
In another incident a coconut tree was reported to have come down on a house late in the evening in Nachinola. The continuous rain resulted in inundation of the area near the Carrasvaddo underpass. Motorists especially two-wheeler riders and pedestrians were inconvenienced on account of the water-logging. The Cunchelim road near the Sai Baba temple was also inundated.
