Brahmapur: Floodwater gushing down the hills inundated Taptapani Ghat road on National Highway-326 on Wednesday, disrupting traffic on a vital route connecting Gajapati, Rayagada, Kandhamal, Jeypore, Koraput, Kalahandi and Malkangiri districts, besides neighbouring states Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh.
The road near Palukhala village along the Ganjam-Gajapati border was submerged under nearly two feet of water flowing from a stream on Dhangudi Hill since rhis morning, bringing vehicular movement to a standstill and severely affecting connectivity along the busy highway.
In another incident near the Taptapani tourist area, a landslide triggered a heavy flow of water through a roadside drain, causing knee-deep water to accumulate on the road and paralyse traffic.
Following the disruption, engineers from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) office in Brahmapur, personnel of the Sanakhemundi Fire Services and Patapur police reached the affected areas in the afternoon. With the assistance of local residents, an excavator was deployed to dig a roadside drain near Palukhala, enabling the accumulated water to flow out.
NHAI officials also reached the Taptapani stretch and reportedly took steps to drain the rainwater.