Day 2: Waterlogging in Panaji eases partially

Panaji: Goans continued to brave the heavy showers and the resultant waterlogging in the state capital but with the authorities clearing up clogged drains, the situation was much better on Tuesday. The capital received 13cm of rainfall, which led to waterlogging at the usual hotspots such as the 18the June Road and the EDC Patto complex, but the water subsided within a short period.
The skies remained dark and gloomy with several spells of heavy rainfall interspersed with strong winds gusting to 50kmph.
The directorate of fire and emergency services reported five cases of tree fall in Tiswadi but no loss of life was reported. A tree fell across the road near the Pharmacy College while the strong winds and heavy rainfall bent a tree at Altinho. Since the tree was precariously standing and about to fall on the shed near a government bungalow, fire department officials responded to the call and trimmed the tree as a preventive measure.
Two trees also came crashing down on a house at Renovadi near Merces and at Chimbel.
The waterlogging coupled with the potholed roads slowed down traffic and threw life out of gear for commuters and office-goers.
“As always, we will wait for it to subside and then act like we did something. Drainage system in Panaji was never this bad 10 years ago. Concretisation and poor cleaning has led to clogging. Also, cutting more trees doesn’t help. Embarrassing,” said techie and writer Ronak Kamat.
The average rainfall over Goa was 156mm for the past 24 hours, which is the highest in the last five years, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD) Goa. The IMD has warned of heavy rainfall for the next five days and has issued an orange alert.