Maharashtra: Father-Son Duo Swept Away as Heavy Rains Flood Akola District

Heavy rainfall across parts of Akola district since Monday night has led to flooding in several talukas, resulting in a tragic incident in Telhara where a father and son were swept away by a flooded drain. The son, Vaibhav Gawargur from Ubarkhed village, lost his life in the incident. His body was recovered on Tuesday morning. The incident occurred around 9 pm on Monday when Manoj Gawargur and his son Vaibhav were returning home from their farm on a motorcycle. While crossing a flooded drain between Panchgav han and Nimbhora villages, both were swept away by the strong current. Only Vaibhav's body has been found so far.A very heavy rainfall warning was issued for East Vidarbha districts, including Nagpur, Gondia, Bhandara, Gadchiroli, and Chandrapur, for Wednesday.

A record 171.8mm rainfall lashed Lonar (Buldhana) from Monday night to Tuesday morning. Most other tehsils in the district received over 50mm rainfall. In Akola, Balapur taluka (Paras) recorded 177.3mm, and Patur Taluka (Channi & Sasti) recorded 75.5mm. Akola district received a spell of heavy rainfall within 24 hours, flooding farms and houses and damaging crops. Local reports suggest hundreds of hectares of standing crops were destroyed.

Meanwhile, several parts of Balapur and Patur talukas recorded intense rainfall, disrupting road traffic and affecting normal life. Roads were temporarily closed in some areas due to waterlogging. In a related development, traffic on the Akot-Deori-Shegaon road was halted after water from the Man project over-flowed onto the Man river bridge near Lohara village. The road was closed from 9 am as a precautionary measure.