Hyderabad: Two brothers were struck by lightning when they were taking shelter under a tree in Bhadradri Kothagudem on Friday, even as the state was rocked by rainfall.
The deceased children, Borra Siddhu, 15, and Borra Chandu, 11, were siblings from Jamendar Bazaar village.
Continuous rainfall across Telangana led to significant disruptions with water levels in reservoirs rising rapidly and streams overflowing. Nizamabad’s Vempalle recorded the highest rainfall of 132.8 mm, followed by Jagtial’s Mallapur (96.3 mm), Raikal (82.5 mm), and Nirmal’s Khanapur (80.3 mm).
Rain brought the maximum temperature down to 24°C but played spoilsport with weekend plans and caused severe waterlogging and traffic disruptions across the city. Uprooted trees further exacerbated the situation.
The highest rainfall in Hyderabad was recorded in Shaikpet at 31.8 mm, Khairatabad (30.3 mm) and Golconda (29.5 mm).
The Muthadivagu project in Adilabad was at full capacity while Jurala project saw an inflow of 71,950 cusecs since Friday night.
Hussainsagar lake was near its full capacity of 514 feet prompting the authorities to open two gates to release water.
In Jogulamba Gadwal, Narayanpet, and other Krishna River basin areas, farmers were put on alert due to increased inflow. The Kadem project in Adilabad opened three gates to release excess water while water in the Godavari in Bhadrachalam reached 35.1 feet.
Heavy rainfall brought down coal production at Singareni’s open-cast mines by 80 per cent.
The Ashwaraopet tank in Bhadradri-Kothagudem has seen significant breaches due to flooding. The Bhadradri Kothagudem administration set up a hotline (08744-241950) and a WhatsApp number (9392919743) for emergency communications.
Irrigation minister N, Uttam Kumar Reddy directed irrigation officials to remain on high alert due to heavy rainfall forecast. Engineers have been instructed not to leave their headquarters without permission, and all field engineers are to remain available for emergency response.
The IMD has forecast extremely heavy rains in several northern Telangana districts, issuing red alerts for Adilabad, Komaram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial, Nirmal, and Peddapalli. An orange alert has been declared for Nizamabad, Jagtial, Rajanna Sircilla, Karimnagar, and Jayashankar Bhupalpally districts.
A yellow warning for Hyderabad predicting cloudy skies with light to moderate rain or thundershowers, accompanied by gusty winds. The IMD has warned of potential water pooling on roads and traffic congestion in several locations.
