The death toll in freak rains has risen to 22, even as fresh areas reeled under its impact on Sunday, this time in Coastal Andhra.
Most of the 12 deaths were reported from Prakasam, Nellore, Krishna and Chittoor districts either due to lightning or electrical short-circuit. Three persons were injured in house-collapses, two of them in Adilabad and one in Nizamabad.
Strong gales that accompanied the torrential rains damaged nearly 1,000 houses in Telangana region and in Nellore, Prakasam, Guntur and Krishna in Coastal Andhra.
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Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, who reviewed the situation with officials, asked Ministers J. Geetha Reddy (Major Industries) and D. Sridhar Babu (Civil Supplies) to rush to Medak and Karimnagar districts respectively to supervise relief operations. Ministers available in other affected districts were directed to follow suit in those areas.
The fury of the untimely downpours was such that Vinjamur (Nellore district) and Vijayawada recorded a heavy rainfall of 15 cm each, Mangalagiri and Guntur 12 cm each, Yerragondaplem 11 cm, Venkatagiri Town, Thiruvur, Vuyyur and Sattenpalli 9 cm each.
Similarly, Chittoor in Rayalaseema reported a rainfall of 9 cm while Ibrahimpatnam and Suryapet in Telangana were lashed by 5 cm and 4 cm respectively.
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According to information reaching disaster management commissioner T. Radha from districts, who is monitoring the situation with Collectors, extent of regular crops like paddy, maize, Bengal gram etc damaged has gone up to 1.47 lakh hectares.
On the other hand, damage to horticulture crops (mango chilli, vegetables) over an area of 1.45 lakh ha is also reported from different areas. The accurate details about the extent of the crop damage, however, would be known only after completion of physical verification at field level as part of enumeration which, however, was commenced at all places immediately.
He said ex-gratia against the deaths would be paid as per the existing norms specified under Apathbandhu insurance scheme. He asked Collectors to send the proposals with claims immediately.
Meanwhile, India Meteorological Department continued with the warning issued to Telangana and Coastal Andhra regions that thunder-squalls combined with rains and hailstorms were likely on Monday also.