Trapped bus passengers have harrowing time in Ediralapadu

“130 bus services on 28 routes withdrawn as rivulets are in spate in the district”

It was an agonising wait for eight passengers of an APSRTC bus which got stuck in an overflowing rivulet at Ediralapadu, near Konakanamitla on Thursday as torrential rain dislocated normal life in Prakasam district.

Misjudging the flood flow, the driver of the bus carrying 11 passengers tried to cross the road and the vehicle got stuck in the middle of the Ediralapadu vagu, four km from Konakanamitla, APSRTC Regional Manager V. Naga Sivudu said.

While three swam to safety, eight others, including the driver, stood on top of the bus, shouting for help for hours together before a rescue team rushed to the spot and escorted them to safety, he added “As many as 130 bus services on 28 routes were withdrawn as rivulets are in spate across the district,” he added.

Meanwhile, four people were rescued from a lorry which got stranded in a rivulet in Kalisavalapadu in Tarlabadu mandal, while three farmers caught in swirling waters of a stream in Badivaripadu near Santhamagaluru were rescued by the villagers.

The swollen Nallavagu disrupted vehicular traffic between Ongole and Kothapatnam. People pulled with ropes a lorry which developed a snag while crossing the Nallavagu and crossed the rivulet in hip-deep water. As rain battered Parchur, rain water entered the houses including Tehsildar’s office, Education Department office, SC boys hostel and the electricity sub-station, disrupting power supply to localities in and around Parchur. The vehicular traffic to Guntur also came to a standstill as the Sathivagu en-route was in spate.

Villagers rescued

Special Correspondent from Kurnool adds: In a daring operation, 50 villagers who were caught in the middle of the stream near Atmakur were rescued by local people and police on Thursday.

According to reports, the villagers who tried to cross the over-flowing Bhavanasi river at a bridge in a tractor were scared when the tractor stopped midway. On hearing the screams of the victims, the local people and police rushed to the place and rescued them with the help of ropes.

Bhavanasi river which originates in the Nallamala forest is a violent stream with high velocity of water flow. The river joins the Krishna at Sangameswara temple.