Personnel of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are conducting a search operation, he said.
A search operation by the NDRF is underway in Gujarat’s Morbi district to trace seven people who were swept away along with their tractor while crossing a flooded road in a river amid heavy rains, an official said on Monday.
Ten of the 17 people on board the tractor-trailer were rescued in a night-time operation near the village of Dhavana.
“The tractor-trailer carrying 17 people was swept away while passing through a causeway (over a river) near Dhavana village in Halvad taluka of Morbi district around 9 pm on Sunday. Ten people were rescued while seven others are missing,” Morbi fire official Devendrasinh Jadeja said.
Personnel of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are conducting a search operation, he said.
Several parts of Gujarat were lashed by heavy to very heavy rains in the last 24 hours till 6 am on Monday, forcing authorities to shift hundreds of people to safe places after low-lying areas in Navsari and Valsad districts were inundated due to a rise in the water level of monsoon rivers.
At 356 mm, Khergam taluka in Navsari district recorded the highest rainfall in the last 24 hours ending at 6 am on Monday, State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) data showed.
During this period, Dang-Ahwa taluka of Dangs district received 268 mm of rainfall and Kaprada (Valsad district) 263 mm.
Parts of Narmada, Sirendranagar, Rajkot, Tapi, Mahisagarand Morbi, Dahod and Vadodara were among other districts that received over 100 mm of rainfall.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel spoke to collectors of Morbi, Kutch, Rajkot, Surendranagar and Bhavnagar districts in Saurashtra region and Bharuch and Dang districts in south Gujarat on Sunday evening to review the situation.
Patel has instructed the collectors to remain alert and ensure the safety of people and their livestock by constantly monitoring the rain situation, the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.
Amid forecasts of more rains in the state, Chief Secretary Raj Kumar chaired a review meeting on Sunday evening.
The India Meteorological Department has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall in Gujarat during the next week.
“Based on this (forecast), the Chief Secretary directed the various district administrations to make all necessary arrangements. He directed the officers and employees of the district and taluka administrative system to be present on duty at the headquarters, considering the prevailing rainy situation,” an official release said.
The chief secretary said administrations should remain especially vigilant at places where people are likely to gather in large numbers considering the upcoming festivals during the month of Shravan to avoid any rain-related tragedy.
The local administration must also ensure that roads closed due to flooding are restored immediately and that power supply is not interrupted for a long time.
With the current spell of rains, southern Gujarat districts have so far received over 105 per cent of the average annual rainfall, the highest in the state.
Eight districts in southern Gujarat and Saurashtra have received more than 100 per cent of their average annual rainfall. All other districts have recorded more than 50 per cent of the average annual rainfall so far this season, according to SEOC data.
(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First published: August 26, 2024 | 11:50 a.m. IS
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