The Indian Navy, in a swift action, rescued 12 persons, including women and children, who were stranded close to the cofferdam of the Polavaram project, near Gandipochamma Temple in East Godavari district on Friday. Based on a request from the State administration, the Navy deployed a UH3H helicopter from INS Dega of the Eastern Naval Command.
The stranded persons, including fishermen and their family members, were stranded on boats near the cofferdam, due to heavy current in the swollen Godavari river. The helicopter reached the site at around 1 p.m. and airlifted them to safety in coordination with the district administration and NDRF team, who were present at the site.
Meanwhile, it is learnt that the Navy and Indian Coast Guard are on alert and are ready for relief and rescue operations in north coastal Andhra Pradesh.
River in spate
Special Correspondent reports from Vijayawada
The flood in Godavari reached a peak of 14.53 lakh cusecs at the Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage at Dowleswaram, the point where the river ends and Godavari Delta begins at 4 p.m. and remained steady throughout the day.
The flood at most of the gauges in the river remained steady throughout the day. The water level in the river at Bhadrachalam was 47.7 ft, just three few inches below the second warning level of 48 ft. At Kunavaram, the level recorded was 40.5 metres, a few centimetres over the “danger level” of 39.34 metres. The inflow at Srisailam will increase to 4 lakh cusecs shortly making it mandatory for the authorities to open the gates of the reservoir. The inflow to Tungabhadra tributary have increased to 1.42 lakh cusecs.