Karnataka   

Bangaloreans confront a deluge of problems

Bangalore Bureau

One dead, Army help sought to rescue people in flood-hit areas; fragile infrastructure exposed

BANGALORE: The fragile infrastructure of Bangalore was exposed yet again on Tuesday under the fury of torrential rains that left one dead, over a dozen injured, vast expanses of low-lying residential areas and arterial roads under water, and houses marooned. The city police had to seek the Army's help for rescue operations.

An all-time monthly high of 524 mm rainfall had thousands of office-goers, schoolchildren, autorickshaw and taxi drivers stuck in waterlogged roads for hours even as the showers continued unabated, particularly on Hosur Road, Sarjapur Road, Old Madras Road, Bellary Road, and Airport Road.

A motorcycle rider was washed away in the overflowing drains on Hosur Road in Madiwala police station limits on Monday night.

The police gave the name of the victim as Manavalan (28), an executive with TTK Ltd. According to police, the victim was searching for his footwear lost on the way when he fell into the drain.

Police Commissioner Ajay Kumar Singh said Army help has been sought for rescue operations in Madiwala, Puttenahalli in J.P. Nagar, and Hebbal. Nearly 1,000 people were rescued from these areas.

Trains cancelled

Several trains bound for Chennai were cancelled while some were diverted via Salem. An Air Deccan flight to Chennai was delayed by over four hours at the city airport.

Most water bodies in the city, including the Madiwala Lake, Ulsoor lake, Lalbagh Tank, Hebbal Lake, Doddanakkundi Lake and Sankey Tank were filled to the brim. Areas around Ulsoor Lake were inundated with up to three feet of water overflowing from the Ulsoor Nala.

Hosur Road, the crucial link to Electronic City, was a picture of chaos with vehicles lined up for many kilometres.

Businessmen on Commercial Street struggled to flush out rainwater that flooded most basement shops on the busy road.

While BMTC buses were stuck in traffic jams, autorickshaws were hard to find.

On Mysore Road, traffic was diverted to the Outer Ring Road after a huge sewage drain started overflowing onto the road near Kimco junction.

Several schools in the city decided early on Tuesday to declare a holiday to help children return home early.

At Hombegowdanagar and Koramangala, schoolchildren were seen struggling to walk back home in the rain.

Trees came crashing on many streets.

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