Ghataprabha, Bhima, Doni rivers unleash flood fury in North Karnataka

Unrelenting rain and floods have brought life to a standstill in Vijayapura, Belagavi, Uttara Kannada and Kalaburagi districts. Incessant showers and overflowing rivers and rivulets have damaged acres of crops, houses and road infrastructure in the affected districts.

A woman died in her sleep after a wall of house collapsed on her at Hulikatti village in Savadatti taluk on Sunday. Gangavva Ramanna Mulimani, 55, the deceased, was a resident of Hulikatti. She was rushed to the hospital after the incident at around 4 am. She succumbed to her injuries. The Savadatti police have registered a case.

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The body of Dandappa Basappa Maladinni (25), who was washed away in floods in a stream at Kolavi village in Gokak taluk on Friday, was found on Sunday.

Unyielding showers have sent traffic haywire in parts of Belagavi district. With a drastic rise in water level of Krishna and its tributaries, five road bridges have gone under floodwaters. Malaprabha dam at Naviluthirtha clocked inflow of 2,294 cusec. The bridge on Jatrata-Bhivashi stretch in Nippani taluk has been closed for traffic. Hukkeri taluk administration has raised flood alarm in the villages in Ghataprabha basin following a heavy discharge from Raja Lakhamgouda reservoir on Sunday.

Soybean, tobacco damaged

Relentless showers have caused irreversible damage to ready-to-harvest soybean and tobacco crops in Chikkodi taluk. Tobacco, a major commercial crop in the region, has turned yellow due to inclement weather.

Heavy rains continued unabated in Vijayapura district, where 39 houses have been damaged completely or partially. Traffic on Talikote-Vijayapura and Talikote-Hadaginal roads has been crippled with bridges across Doni river going under floodwaters. Bagaluru village in Almel taluk has been cut off after heavy discharge from the Maharashtra dams into Bhima river flooded a bridge. The overflowing Doni has meandered its way through agriculture fields measuring over a few thousand acres.

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Deval Ganagapur cut off

Popular pilgrimage centres of Kalaburagi - Deval Ganagapur and Ghattarga - have been cut off with the swollen Bhima river submerging the bridges, thanks to heavy showers in its catchment and sustained rise in outflows from Ujani reservoir in Maharashtra. Over 1.5 lakh cusec water was released into Bhima river from Sonna barrage, which has a storage capacity of 3 tmcft, on Sunday as flood alert has been raised in the villages downstream.

Honnavar taluk in Uttara Kannada district experienced heavy showers on Sunday. Thotadamakki bridge under Chikkakod GP limits has been submerged. Sirsi, Mondgod, Joida, Karwar, Kumta and Bhatkal also received heavy rain intermittently. Incessant rain, coupled with cold winds, pummeled Madikeri taluk on Sunday. Mudslip was reported at Madapur Muvattloku in the taluk. MLA Appachuranjan has urged the residents of the landslide-prone area to vacate houses and assured them of compensation and a house.