Flood-related deaths in Odisha’s Keonjhar district rose to five on Wednesday as incessant rain triggered by a slow-moving weather system inundated many villages, authorities said.
Event Context
Balasore emerged as the worst-hit district, while Keonjhar saw the maximum casualties.
In Keonjhar, a fire services personnel Chandan Pattnaik died of electrocution while on duty. Officials said he came into contact with a clothesline made of galvanised iron wire that became live because of an electrical fault.
In another incident, a person was killed after a wall collapsed, and a 24-year-old woman was swept away by floodwaters, revenue and disaster management minister Suresh Pujari said.
Authorities battled widespread flooding across several districts. Two brothers in Bolangir district were also critically injured after their house collapsed on Tuesday night following two days of heavy rain.
Also Read:Over 2 lakh affected in Odisha flood; all major rivers in spate after heavy rain
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According to the state’s flood status report issued at 9am, floods have affected 2.32 lakh (0.232 million) people in six districts leading to the evacuation of over 30,000 people.
Officials said Balasore accounted for more than half of the affected population, with 109,429 people impacted.
The state government cancelled leaves for all government employees in flood-affected districts and directed them to remain on duty to support relief and rescue operations, Pujari said. District collectors have also been authorised to decide on the closure of schools depending on local conditions.
India Meteorological Department meteorologist Umasankar Das said the flooding was caused by an unusually slow-moving weather system that lingered over Odisha for several days.
A low-pressure area formed over the northwest Bay of Bengal on July 25 and intensified into a depression a day later, but instead of moving inland quickly, it travelled less than 500 km over four days, reaching near Jharsuguda, Das said.
“The very slow movement of the system has brought a huge amount of rainfall, leading to flood conditions across the state,” he said.
