Gujarat: Toll due to heavy rains rises to 28, around 40,000 evacuated from flood-hit areas

At least 28 people have been killed in rain-related incidents in the past three days in Gujarat, the Hindustan Times reported on Thursday.

The deaths have been reported from Rajkot, Anand, Mahisagar, Kheda, Ahmedabad, Morbi, Junagadh and Bharuch districts.

Seven of the fatalities occurred when a tractor-trolley was swept away by flood water in Morbi’s Halvad taluka, India Today reported.. A six-year-old girl who was also among those travelling on the tractor-trolley is missing.

In Rajkot, three members of a family were killed after their car was swept away in flood water.

Authorities have evacuated around 40,000 persons from flood-hit areas, the Hindustan Times quoted state relief commissioner Alok Kumar Pandey as saying.

State health minister and government spokesperson Rushikesh Patel said that more than 5,000 persons were evacuated and another 1,200 were rescued in Vadodara.

Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel asked the Centre for five additional National Disaster Response Force teams and four Army columns to deal with the floods in Vadodara. Rescue boats have been sent to the district from Ahmedabad and Surat.

Among the urban areas of Gujarat, Vadodara was the worst-hit city, with some parts submerged under 10 to 12 feet of water. Although rains took a pause on Wednesday, the Vishwamitri river, which flows through the western part of the city, breached its banks and entered several residential areas.

Heavy rains lashed several parts of Gujarat for the fourth straight day on Wednesday. The State Emergency Operations Centre said that Gujarat has received 105% of its average rainfall till now.

The India Meteorological Department has warned of extremely heavy rains in isolated parts of Saurashtra region on Thursday.