IMD Hyderabad head Dr K. Nagaratna posted an orange alert for the GHMC limits, and warned of “heavy to very heavy rain or thundershowers at times very intense spells” with a flash-flood risk.
Hyderabad: The education department ordered half-day holidays for schools on Wednesday and Thursday, with Hyderabad facing a high-risk 72 hours. Friday is a holiday for Independence Day.
The city's disaster relief agency called for curbs on travel and the weather office placed the city on alert over the next two days.
HYDRAA commissioner A.V. Ranganath said 100 to 150 mm of rain was likely in many parts especially in Medchal district and Cyberabad and “in some places even 20 cm (200 mm)”. While he advised those in low-lying areas to move to safer locations, the director of school education ordered half-day holidays on August 13 and 14 for all schools in the GHMC area, owing to IMD warning of very heavy to extremely heavy rain.
IMD Hyderabad head Dr K. Nagaratna posted an orange alert for the GHMC limits, and warned of “heavy to very heavy rain or thundershowers at times very intense spells” with a flash-flood risk.
Across Telangana, red alerts on Wednesday cover Hanmakonda, Jangaon, Mahabubabad, Warangal and Yadadri Bhuvanagiri. Thursday’s red alert covers Medak, Sangareddy and Vikarabad.
Orange alerts span Bhadradri Kothagudem, Hyderabad, Jayashankar Bhupalpally, Karimnagar, Medchal–Malkajgiri, Mulugu, Peddapalli, Ranga Reddy, Nalgonda Khammam and more in the next couple of days. Forecasters also flagged thunderstorms with lightning and gusts of 40 to 50 kmph.
On Tuesday, despite the forecasts, the city saw no rain until at least midnight although districts faced a downpour. Telangana Development Planning Society gauges showed 130.8 mm at Mangapet in Mulugu, 101 mm at Mallur in the same district and 96 mm at Venkatapuram.
In Hyderabad, rainfall was negligible, even as the warnings from earlier kept traffic thin on the roads. A commuter travelling towards Hitec City around 9.30 pm noticed lighter than usual traffic and sparsely filled metro coaches.
Reservoirs braced for more inflow. Osmansagar’s level stood at 1,784.55 ft against its full tank level of 1,790 ft, with 2.76 tmc ft of water with 1,300 cusecs coming in. Himayatsagar (FTL 1,763.5 ft), held 2.52 tmc ft of water at 1761.50 ft level. One gate released 330 cusecs, later raised to three feet for a 1,000 cusecs outflow by 10 pm. Officials cited heavy rain forecasts and the need to keep a flood cushion.
