Goa: Landslide at Chorla Ghat disrupts traffic for six hours

By- Afaq Khan
VALPOI: The heavy rain and gusty winds that lashed the state for the second day on Wednesday triggered a landslide along the Chorla Ghat road, bringing traffic on the Goa-Belagavi route to a halt for nearly six hours.
The landslide occurred in the afternoon, bringing huge boulders and trees crashing onto the highway.
“It took over five hours to clear the debris,” said officials from the Valpoi fire services, who were kept on their toes attending to calls related to fallen trees and branches. Over 30 trees were uprooted, with many blocking roads and disrupting traffic.
Falling trees in many parts brought down power lines.
Officials from the Valpoi fire services said that traffic was blocked in Bhironda, Nanora, Massordem, and the Valpoi municipal area due to trees having fallen across the road. At Copardem and Zarme, a few houses were partially damaged when trees came crashing down on them.
Further disrupting life in Sattari, the incessant rain caused several areas to also go under water. In some places water even entered houses causing damage to the structures.
The Valpoi-Ponda road was inundated at Nanus, leading to a major traffic jam. A similar scene was witnessed at Keri, Massordem and Sonal and along several internal roads, too.
Most rivers and water bodies overflowed and in some parts spilled over bridges, too. Crops were damaged due to the force of gushing rain water.