Rains batter Kodagu, many houses collapse

With heavy rains continuing to batter Kodagu, some families living on the hills in Madikeri town found themselves homeless when their dwellings caved in under the onslaught. As many as eight houses tumbled to the ground in Indira Nagar and Chamundeshwari Nagar in the town. Many people living in the hilly areas have abandoned their homes fearing a collapse. The video of a single-storied house near Muthhappa Temple slithering into a 100-foot gorge on Thursday has gone viral. The house owners had deserted the house after being warned that it would be dangerous to stay there. Another house in the area is also on the verge of caving in and the family has been moved out. A gruel centre has opened at an anganwadi centre in the town for sheltering families who have been rendered homeless. Meanwhile, Kushalnagar-Hassan Road has been closed to traffic with water discharged from the Harangi dam destroying a portion of the highway. Around 40,000 cusecs of water was discharged from the dam since Thursday morning and the quantum of release went up by evening. Some localities in Kushalnagar town in the downstream were flooded. Sai Layout and Kuvempu Layout were also among the localities affected by floods. The Kudige Bridge connecting Kushalnagar and Kudige is likely to get submerged. Strong currents are dashing against the bridge and traffic has been suspended indefinitely as a precautionary measure. For the fourth day on Thursday, the Madikeri-Mangaluru highway was closed to traffic in the wake of fresh landslips at several places. Debris collected on the road at Madenadu has been removed by earthmovers. Madikeri-Virajpet Road and Madikeri-Somawarpet-Sakleshpur Road have been closed following landslips. Kaloor village near Madikeri has turned into an island. A portion of Madikeri-Maandalapatti road has caved in causing hardships in commuting. With Lakshmantheertha river also in spate, several houses at Karadigodu village in Virajpet taluk are in danger of getting inundated in flood waters. The residents have been moved to safer places in country boats and a gruel centre had been opened at a government school in the village. A portion of bridge near Kanooru which connects Kerala through Ponnampet and Kutta has collapsed and the remaining portion is also in jeopardy. Several parts of rain-affected Kodagu are without electricity with the heavy downpour since over a fortnight has brought life to a grinding halt. There is also disruption in telecommunication and mobile networks with the personnel unable to restore the networks with the rain continuing to pound the coffee land, resulting in floods and landslides. The situation has turned from bad to worse with the rains wreaking havoc across the district, forcing the authorities to seek help from the neighbouring districts and the State machinery. Kodagu Additional Deputy Commissioner Praveen told The Hindu that an NDRF team is expected to reach Kodagu on Friday and the Quick Response Team has landed for carrying out rescue operations.   Source: The Hindu