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Bengaluru sinks in rain; rescue boats hit streets

Last updated on: July 29, 2016 19:05 IST

A couple of days of rainfall and the Bengaluru residents are struggling to stay afloat.

Residents being rescued from their flooded homes by the fire department. Photograph: Shailendra Bhojak/PTI

Overflowing drains, uprooted trees and collapsed walls were reported from across the city following heavy rains that continued to lash the city till late Friday morning.

The fire department used boats to rescue people who were stranded in the rain waters.

Water logging at Bilekahalli Ward, Banneragatta Road. Photograph: @BlrCityPolice/Twitter

According to media reports, Yemalur and surrounding areas, abutting Bellandur Lake in southeast Bengaluru, were inundated after the lake overflowed on Thursday evening over the past two days.

Fire & Emergency Service personnel rescue the flood affected people from the Kodichikkanhalli area in Bengaluru. Photograph: Shailendra Bhojak/PTI

The worst affected were many areas in Bommanahalli zone. Following the breach of a lake, Kodichikkanahalli, Bilekahalli and surrounding areas were flooded, forcing the ground floor residents to move to the upper floors early on Friday morning.

Fire department officials are rescuing some people using boats near Bilekahalli.

The situation in Veersandra Jn, Electronic City. Photograph: @goyal_abhei/Twitter

Old Madras Road, Hosur Road, Outer Ring Road, Bannerghatta Road and Ballari Road faced traffic jams and witnessed bumper to bumper traffic as crucial junctions on these roads were waterlogged.

Many people residing there -- most of them are techies who did not go to work.

Anup, a techie said he did not go to office.

Photograph: @FtownTraffic/Twitter

"My car has problem as water entered. No power at home as ups is not functioning. I cannot work from home too," he told the Indian Express newspaper.

R Hitendra, Additional Commissioner of police (Traffic), told the Hindu that incessant rains and inundation of crucial arterial roads had put the traffic in the city out of gears.

Photograph: ‏@yaminip/Twitter

"We, along with Fire and Emergency Services, have been trying to remove water from these inundated roads clearing them for traffic. But even after clearing water, we observe that the waterlogging has created large potholes and bad road stretches which have drastically brought down the traffic speeds on the city’s roads in the last one week," he said.