GUNTUR: Forty-seven passengers aboard an APSRTC bus had a lucky escape on Thursday after their vehicle got stuck in the fast-flowing Yedduvagu at Vutukuru in Krosuru mandal of Guntur district.
The police, revenue officials and local residents rescued the passengers — who had climbed onto the roof of the vehicle — after six hours with the help of ropes. Another 10 people, who were in an autorickshaw, were also rescued.
The bus was going to Krosuru from Guntur and the autorickshaw was going to Krosuru from Vutukuru. The floodwaters suddenly rose to five feet and entered both vehicles’ engines, stalling them. Passengers, including those from the autorickshaw, got atop the bus and started screaming for help.
A police team soon reached the spot but a strong current prevented them from reaching the vehicle. Pedakurapadu MLA K. Sreedhar briefed AP CM N. Chandrababu Naidu of the situation and asked for a helicopter to rescue the 57 people. But at around 2 pm, the waters started receding and the police team, with the help of locals and other officials were able to reach the bus and rescued all passengers within an hour.
Mr Brahmam, a passenger, said he feared the bus would be washed away by the water. He added that the helicopter arrived when the rescue was almost over.
Other passengers from the bus said at one point — when the bus started moving into the water — they had lost all hope but held on thanks to constant shouts of encouragement from the locals. Elsewhere, 70 persons were rescued from two buses at Narasaraopeta. The vehicles were stuck in floodwaters near the stadium.
Tree saves boy, kin missing
Fed up with delayed response to calls for help, villagers here saved a 14-year-old boy who was clinging onto a palm tree. Venkateswarlu had lost his parents and sister to the waters of the Kuppaganji Vagu rivulet and was stranded on the tree for hours.
Cops said the boy lost his family were hit by flooding when water started to rise at the Gangannapalem lift irrigation site. Venkateswarlu was washed away with three of his family members but the boy managed to cling onto a tree.
Locals at Ameensahebpalem called for help and personnel from the the National Disaster Response Force tried to rescue the boy several times but strong currents of the Kuppaganji Vagu scuttled their efforts.
A helicopter was deployed by evening but the pilot merely made several rounds in the air and left. Finally, several villagers formed a human chain and using rope, helped Venkateswarlu off the palm tree. But the boy’s father, Ch. Kondalu, 30, sister Vanaja, 10, and mother Subbulu, 25, are presumed dead.
7 deaths in AP, Godavari levels rise
Heavy rain crippled normal life in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday. Guntur, Prakasam, Kakinada, Kurnool and parts of North Andhra and Rayalaseema bore the brunt of the deluge. Six people were confirmed dead in Guntur and one person was washed away in Visakhapatnam.
Also, the Godavari is rising steadily following moderate rainfall in its catchment area around Badrachalam about 2.50 lakh cusecs of water is being released from the Sir Arthur Cotton barrage at Dowle-swaram as the water level was 10.90 ft at 6.00 PM on Thursday.
