A day before the >southwest monsoon set in the State , an “exceptionally heavy spell” of rain on Friday night once again exposed the chinks in the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike’s (BBMP) monsoon preparedness. The two-hour rainfall, which claimed a life, brought IT city to its knees.
With 100 mm rainfall received between 7.15 p.m. on Friday and 8.30 a.m. on Saturday, the city also recorded the second wettest day in June, just falling short of the highest ever recorded 101.6 mm on June 16, 1891.
The aftermath
The consequences were there for everyone to see: especially the in the eastern, western and southern part of the city, as homes were inundated, arterial roads flooded and trees uprooted, throwing life out of gear. Some 172 homes were inundated and 44 trees uprooted as the city received 60 mm rainfall (considered heavy over a 24-hour period) between 7.30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Several areas plunged into darkness, with power cables snapping. Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom) received 4,400 calls from harried people.
Commuters stranded
Motorists were stuck in traffic for hours, and some had to abandon their vehicles as water incapacitated the engines. Quite a few fell prey to treacherous pothole-riddled roads.
A BBMP source told The Hindu had it rained for some more time, it would have been catastrophic for the city, already besieged by rain-related woes.
Meanwhile, the BBMP lumbered into action on Saturday evening when it announced the constitution of additional teams and clearing drains of silt in drains and flooded areas across the city.
District in-charge Minister Ramalinga Reddy toured the worst-hit areas, especially around Majestic, in the morning.
He told reporters the havoc was because it had rained too much within a short span of time.
