JOIN USHeavy rains continued to lash Andhra Pradesh today, leaving 17 people dead and forcing the evacuation of 67,419 others from low-lying areas.
Seventeen people were killed in various rain-related incidents as the downpour continued for the fourth consecutive day today even as two others were also missing, official sources said here.
They said 135 relief camps have been set up in the coastal districts, which bore the brunt of the rain fury.
Standing paddy, maize, cotton, redgram and crops were inundated in about 2.5 lakh hectares.
As heavy rains led to submergence of low-lying areas and also overflowing of several rivers, rivulets and other water bodies, nine teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed for rescue and relief work.
The sources said 3050 houses suffered damages and 110 cattle also perished due to the rains.
Officials said about 117 minor irrigation tanks suffered breaches, and landslides were experienced at the hat road leading to the temple town of Srisailam in Kurnool district. Vehicular traffic has also been diverted.
The Met office had said yesterday that heavy to very heavy rain at a few places with extremely heavy rain at isolated places would occur in all the districts of coastal Andhra and Telangana during the next 48 hours.
There was a similar forecast for isolated places over Rayalaseema during the same period, it said.
The heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon and a low pressure area over Bay of Bengal during the last three days paralysed normal life in several parts of AP, particularly coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema.
The downpur led to water logging in several towns and villages across the coastal district disrupting public transport.
Hyderabad has also experienced incessant rains which resulted in inundation of low-lying areas and water-logging on the roads.