Rain floods homes in Hubballi; vehicles stuck in waterlogged underpass

HUBBALLI: Heavy rains in Hubballi city last night caused water to enter low-lying areas, flooding several parts of the city.

In the old Hubballi area, rainwater seeped into houses, causing distress among residents.

A Tempo Traveller carrying 13 passengers, along with two cars, plunged into a waterlogged service road at the Rayanal underpass at the under-construction Hubballi-Dharwad bypass in outer Hubballi. Fortunately, no lives were lost in the incident.

In the early morning hours, two-wheeler riders were seen taking the risk of crossing the waterlogged road as the water level began to recede. The heavy rainfall also caused waterlogging in 30 houses in the Ganesh Nagar area.

Residents complained that they face similar flooding issues after every heavy rain, but are not receiving any assistance or response from authorities.

“After the heavy rainfall we witnessed yesterday, the real issue lies with the open gutters. They are filled with 4-5 feet of dirt and plastic waste, which blocks the water flow and causes flooding inside our homes. You must have seen how serious the situation is — there’s stagnant water everywhere because the drains aren’t allowing free flow of water. We face the same problem every year. There is a solution, but despite contacting the area MLA, we are told that the gutters and infrastructure are adequate to handle such issues. But the sewers are not being cleaned, and that’s causing major trouble for us. In Ganesh Nagar, almost every household was flooded because of this”, said Prakash, a resident of Ganesh Nagar.

Residents of Ganesh Nagar in Hubballi continue to face serious problems during heavy rainfall due to poorly maintained drainage systems. The open gutters in the area are clogged with several feet of dirt and plastic waste, blocking the free flow of rainwater.

As a result, water overflows into homes, causing damage to property and disrupting daily life. Residents are demanding urgent attention to long-term solutions like regular gutter cleaning and better flood management systems to ensure that such avoidable suffering does not become an annual ordeal. (ANI)