The incessant rains lashing the city for the past few days resulted in a landslip in Society Quarry lane at Sunnabattilu centre on Monday. Three houses were damaged in the incident but there were no casualties.
The damaged houses belonged to Koranki Subbamma, Jandyala Madhavi and Lakshmi. Kondamma, an old lady who was in her house when the mishap occurred, escaped unhurt. The other inmates of three houses, who are working as domestic maids, left their houses in the early hours.
The local people said the rains loosened the soil and consequently heavy boulders rolled down suddenly around 6.30 a.m., damaging two houses partially and a house completely.
The toilets of two houses were damaged while another house was damaged to the maximum extent.
Local corporator Kalapala Ambedkar and officials of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC), police, fire service and revenue departments rushed to the spot to take up rescue operations. The boulders and debris could not be removed till evening for various reasons, including narrow road and the rain that kept lashing the city intermittently. The local people expressed the fear that similar accidents could occur again, as about another dozen houses on this stretch were placed in a dangerous condition.
Stating that the issue was taken to the notice of Municipal Commissioner G. Ravi Babu, the corporator said the Commissioner responded positively to a suggestion to allocate Indiramma houses to the victims. And, the stretch could be converted into a park or a green belt so that none could occupy it in future. However, the sufferers appeared unwilling to move out of the place, Mr. Ambedkar said. He lamented that the people were ready to risk their lives, but not willing to move out from the danger zones.
