Heavy rains wreaked havoc across Jharkhand, killing five people, leaving one person missing, and injuring several others, officials reported on Saturday morning.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for Palamu, Garhwa, and Chatra districts until 8:30 am on Sunday, while an orange alert covered Latehar, Ranchi, Khunti, Lohardaga, Seraikela-Kharswan, and East and West Singhbhum districts.
In Seraikela-Kharsawan district, a woman and her seven-year-old son died after their house collapsed on Friday night in Dandu village, Rajnagar block. Eight others were injured when the kuchcha house of Santosh Lohar also collapsed during a family visit. “The woman and her son died during treatment at MGM Hospital in Jamshedpur,” said Rajnagar BDO Malay Das.
In another Seraikela-Kharsawan incident, a five-year-old boy died and three others were injured after the wall of a house collapsed around 4 am on Saturday in Kol Shimla, Kharsawan police station area. The victims, including the boy’s parents and two-year-old sister, were admitted to Seraikela Sadar Hospital.
In Chatra district, a couple was swept away by the swelling Siyari river in Katghara village on Friday. The husband’s body was recovered, while his wife remains missing, according to Gidhour BDO Rahul Dev. Additionally, a person died in Khairatola village, Pathalgada block, due to rain-related incidents.
Continuous rainfall over the past 24 hours has uprooted trees and electricity poles, caused house collapses, and inundated roads and farmlands across the state.
In Ranchi, concrete slabs on both sides of an under-construction rail overbridge near Piska station collapsed, causing a major traffic jam on NH 43, an official said. No casualties were reported.
Waterlogging on NH-39 at Brambe Bazar also disrupted traffic, while a road leading to Jagannath Temple in Dhurwa developed a significant crack. Low-lying areas, including Panchshil Nagar, Hindipir, Morabadi, Kokar, Namkum, New Bandhgari, and Samlong, were inundated.
In Chatra’s Pathgada, hundreds of chickens perished at a poultry farm due to heavy rainfall. The Subernarekha river at Mango bridge in Jamshedpur and the Kharkai river at Adityapur bridge were flowing above the danger mark.
Authorities in Lohardaga issued alerts after rising water levels in local rivers, which also damaged several roads. In Koderma district, water levels at the Tilaiya dam reached the danger mark, prompting the opening of eight sluice gates.
Ranchi Meteorological Centre in-charge Baburaj P.P. told PTI that light to moderate rainfall with spells of heavy rain is being experienced across the state under the influence of a low-pressure system, which is likely to move west-northwest over Jharkhand in the next 24 hours before gradually weakening. The state is expected to receive rainfall until August 29.
Latehar’s Chandra recorded the highest rainfall in the state at 205 mm in 24 hours till 8:30 am, followed by Seraikela (146 mm), Ranchi (120 mm), and Chaibasa (120 mm). “Jharkhand received 927.7 mm of rainfall against the normal 738.3 mm between June 1 and August 23, a surplus of 32 percent,” the official added. (Agencies)
