Bhubaneswar: Incessant downpours over two consecutive days have triggered flash floods across Odisha’s Nabarangpur district, leaving one person dead, stranding thousands, and severing vital road connectivity.
The torrential rains caused water levels to surge dramatically in major rivers across the region, including the Indravati, Bhaskel, Bhandar, Tel, Borehi, Kukur Jor, Sukha, and Chikili. The situation turned critical around 8 am on Monday as the Indravati River reached severe flood conditions near Ghatakusumi. Fed by heavy upstream precipitation and excess water released from the Indravati reservoir’s open spillway gates on Sunday, the river peaked at 547.2 metres, rising at a rate of 20.02 mm per hour and surging 2.30 metres higher than its previous historical record of 544.9 metres set on August 19, 2025.
Official updates from the Central Water Commission earlier indicated extreme flood conditions at the site, with levels around 545.88 metres and a rising trend.
In Kotpad block, water spilled into four to five panchayats. ODRAF personnel and local administration staff deployed to Chandili, Suruli, Dhamanahandi, and Bania to execute precautionary evacuations. Farther along in Kosagumuda block, the swelling Indravati and Bhaskel rivers left around 1,500 people stranded, entirely isolating the villages of Kantasharguda and Ghatwaliguda.
Tragedy struck Chandahandi block, where 59-year-old Balabhadra Gouda of Bhendia village was swept away while attempting to cross the swollen Borehi river on his way to transport fertilisers to his farmland. Search and rescue operations remain underway.
In Jharigaon block, a 20-foot section of the approach road and retaining wall along the Chikili river in Kutrichhapar panchayat was completely washed away alongside uprooted trees. A 10-foot stretch of road and a culvert connecting Karlamal with Kebidi and Barapani were also swept away, cutting off more than eight villages. Vehicular movement along the Jharigaon-Dabugaon route came to a halt after floodwaters damaged an under-construction approach road near Ramsa village and submerged the Phupagaon bridge, while State Highway-39 at Jatabal in Dabugaon block was similarly disrupted.
Floodwaters from the overflowing Chikana river inundated homes in Badatemera and Banuaguda panchayats, ITDA Colony and Kangra village in Nandahandi block, with several houses collapsing in Siramaguda. Thousands of acres of farmland across the district remained submerged, raising fears of extensive crop losses. In Dabugaon block, heavy rain disrupted movement along State Highway-39 at Jatabal, while knee-deep water affected normal life in Nandahandi, Tentulikhunti and Kosagumuda blocks. At Mokia in Papdahandi block, rainwater entered houses, prompting the evacuation of around 70 people to a local cyclone shelter where cooked food was provided. A red alert was issued at Badamasigaon, with more than 70 people similarly shifted to safety and given food.
District authorities have mounted a full-scale response to the disaster. Nabarangpur Collector Maheswar Swain ordered the closure of all schools, colleges, and Anganwadi centres across the district. “All field staff have been directed to visit villages and assess the extent of damage. The district administration remains fully alert to handle any situation,” he said, highlighting that Nandahandi, Tentulikhunti, and Nabarangpur blocks received 165 mm of rainfall within a single 24-hour window.