Gudimalkapur recorded the highest rainfall of 14.9 cm on Thursday night

Till 8.30 am on Friday, Gudimalkapur recorded the highest rainfall of 14.9 cm, followed by Shivarampalli with 14 cm and Monda Market with 13.9 cm. The weather on Saturday is likely to be cloudy with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers. With not much of rain on Friday till late in evening, the water levels in many areas receded, bringing much-needed respite to the public.

The nightmare has just begun for hundreds of families in areas hit hard by the torrential rains over the last five days in the city.

While water is slowly receding from their houses, the challenge of cleaning their homes, and then disinfecting them to ensure that there are no disease outbreaks begins for many, especially in East Anandbagh, Shirdi Nagar, NMDC Colony and neighbouring areas.

Very few places in Hyderabad escaped the wrath of the Rain Gods on Thursday night, as colonies were marooned and tarred roads battered out of shape and form into long muddy lakes.

That was not all. With viral fevers yet to slacken their grip, the sheer fear of waterborne diseases has started spreading among the people. The rains had begun late in the evening, forcing people in many colonies to spend a sleepless night as the downpour gathered intensity with every passing minute. It was well past midnight when mucky rainwater gushed into several hundreds of households in low-lying



areas, going as high as the waist in many places, forcing residents to take shelter on the first floors, terraces, and other dry spots.

Water surged into houses at Shirdi Nagar, NMDC Colony in East Anandbagh, Prakashnagar Basti, Vaddera Basthi at Begumpet, a few colonies of Alwal, Uppal, Tarnaka, Trimulgherry and other areas.

At MS Maktha, water entered nearly 200 houses after a portion of the parapet wall of the nala connecting to Hussain Sagar breached due to heavy rains.

On Friday, it was the turn of residents in MS Maktha to echo similar complaints after a portion of the parapet wall of a nala connecting Hussain Sagar collapsed and the floodwater gushed into nearly 200 homes. Many residents woke up after rainwater surged into their houses. At 3 am, residents were seen collecting valuables and trying to keep them safe.

Mayor Bonthu Rammohan monitored the relief measures at MS Maktha and other areas and directed Disaster Response Force teams to clear the water. Khairatabad Zone Commissioner Musharaf Ali Farooqui said the nala wall collapsed after it was repaired a few months ago for taking up desiltation works. At present, a temporary wall has been constructed using sandbags to avoid any overflow. Action will be initiated against the contractor, if there are any lapses in quality, he said.