Second flood warning issued at Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada

The Water Resources Department (WRD) issued both the first and second flood warnings in five hours at the Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada on Thursday, following the extremely heavy rainfall triggered by Cyclone Montha.

Several rivulets and tributaries in the Krishna Basin overflowed, leading to a rapid rise in inflows from the upper catchment areas.

According to the officials, heavy flood inflows began late on Wednesday night. By Thursday evening, the flood level at the Prakasam Barrage reached about 15 feet above the crest. The first flood warning was issued at 1.45 p.m. when the inflow crossed 3.97 lakh cusecs, followed by the second warning at 6.45 p.m. as the flow surged beyond 5.67 lakh cusecs.

The Pulichintala Project also recorded inflows exceeding 5 lakh cusecs, prompting the officials to release around 5.50 lakh cusecs downstream by fully opening all the crest gates to regulate the pressure.

Krishna Central (KC) Division Executive Engineer and River Conservator Ravi Kiran said all the 69 crest gates of the Prakasam Barrage, except one that was under maintenance, were lifted to let out water into the sea.

“Currently, over 5.67 lakh cusecs of water is being discharged. Canal releases have been temporarily stopped to manage flood levels,” he said.

The official noted that the surge was caused by flash floods in the tributaries of the Krishna due to extremely heavy rainfall in the upstream catchment areas. He urged all departments and the general public to stay alert and take safety precautions as the inflows were expected to rise further before receding.