Heavy rain continued to lash Odisha for the third consecutive day on Wednesday, September 3 with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing a warning of widespread showers accompanied by thunderstorm and lightning across the state till Sunday, September 7.
Normal across the state continued to remain affected with several areas reporting waterlogging. Among the most affected districts due to rainfall are Balasore, Bhadrak, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and Bolangir, officials said.
In its evening bulletin, the IMD said that the low-pressure area, which intensified as a “marked system” on Wednesday morning, is likely to move across north Odisha and adjoining Jharkhand and north Chhattisgarh during the next 24 hours.
The low-pressure area has triggered the rains across the state, the weather office said.
Torrential rain has severely impacted Balasore town, with floodwaters inundating the district headquarters hospital, malls, shops, and residential areas.
“Rainwater entered into our treasury room and damaged currency notes, valuable documents and computers,” said Umesh Sahoo, assistant superintendent at the Balasore Town main Post Office.
The flooding at the Balasore district headquarters hospital (DHH) has forced patients to either return to their homes or seek care at other hospitals, a health department official said.
To better prepare for future weather events, Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said that the Central Government has already sanctioned a proposal for the installation of a Doppler Radar System in Bhubaneswar. This system will improve the accuracy of weather predictions, providing time for authorities to prepare.
Similar systems are also planned to be developed in Balasore and Sambalpur, Pujari stated.
Despite the heavy rainfall, the State Water Resources Department’s Engineer-in-Chief, Chandra Sekhar Padhi, said that all rivers, including the Subarnarekha, Jalaka, and Baitarani in north Odisha nd major rivers in southern districts are flowing below the danger mark, alleviating immediate flood concerns.
Padhi further said there was no flood fear in any parts of the state.
Meanwhile, the IMD on its forecast for Thursday said, “Heavy rain and thunderstorm with lightning accompanied by gusty surface wind speed reaching 30-40 kmph very likely to occur at one or two places over the districts of Sundargarh, Jharsuguda and Sambalpur in the western region of the state.”
