Water in Hyderabad's Hussain Sagar lake reached alarming levels on Wednesday after a heavy rainfall of 71 mm lashed the city.
City authorities have alerted those people residing near the lake to prepare for possible evacuation as water in the lake has reached up to full-tank level. This year so far, Hyderabad has witnessed the heaviest rainfall after a span of 15 years.
The sluice gate, devised for controlling the water level, of Hussain Sagar lake was opened to discharge the excess water accumulated due to the continuous rains. The sluice gate of the 453-year-old lake was opened last in August 2000.
Reports state that water levels in the lake reached at around 513.41 meters and water accumulated in the lake has caused trouble for the motorists who take the Tank Bund route close to the lake.
Officials, alarmed at the surging levels of water in the lake, inspected the area on Wednesday and sent the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation staff to alert the residents of the low-lying areas near the lake like Ambedkar Nagar, Aravindanagar, Arundhatinagar and Shivanandnagar. The people were alerted to be ready for evacuation if rainfall continued.
Cautioning the residents of the low-lying areas, the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister K Taraka Rama Rao also tweeted in the morning asking the citizens to take precautions.
The minister also tweeted the emergency helpline number and said that more rainfall is predicted in the region in the next 23 to 48 hours. People can seek help by calling on these numbers: Emergency Call Center at 040 21111111 or 100.
Slum dwellers in certain areas, including Dattanagar, Ratnanagar, Hussainsagar surplus nala, Domalguda, Ashok Nagar and Himayatnagar, have also been warned about the possible flood situation in the region.
