Delhi floods highlights: Yamuna water level over danger mark at 208.05m, 4.65m rise in just 2 days

The water level of the Yamuna breached the 207.5m mark on Wednesday, breaking a 45-year record and leading to several neighbourhoods in low-lying areas of the Capital becoming inundated with floodwaters. Read more

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi is working on "war-footing" to deal with the flood-like situation in some of its areas, while field staff are on "high alert" to deal with any situation, the civic body said on Wednesday.

In view of water levels of the Yamuna river rising to a record level of 207.83 metres on Wednesday, breaching its all-time record of 207.49 metres set 45 years ago, the MCD also issued an advisory to people to use other crematoria for performing last rites as parts of Nigabodh Ghat cremation site has got flooded.

A total of 88 people have lost their lives in the state since June 24 as rain continues to hit Himachal, an official statement issued by Himachal Pradesh state disaster management authority said on Wednesday.

"So far the total number of human losses since June 24 number is 88, and the total number of people missing is 16 (Road Accident-5, Drowning-6, Flash Flood-2, Landslide-02, Slippage-01)," HPSDMA said.

The gushing floodwaters from Yamuna and Markanda rivers marooned around 50 villages in Karnal, Panipat, Kurukshetra, Sonepat and Yamunanagar districts, forcing authorities to move people to safer places. Read more

As the water level in the Yamuna River in Delhi breached the 45-year record of 207.49 metres and reached 208.05 metres on Wednesday, thousands of people were forced to leave their homes in low-lying areas.

According to the Delhi government as part of its evacuation plan, a total of 16,564 people living in low-lying areas have been evacuated to safer places and 14,534 are living in tents/shelters, across the city.

The Central Water Commission (CWC) earlier in the day, forecasted the water level at Old Railway Bridge to be at 207.99 Meters on Thursday between 4 am to 6 am. However, it reached 208.05 at 10 pm on Wednesday.

Amid the increased water level in the Yamuna River, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Gautam Gambhir on Wednesday said that 1000-1500 people including children are stuck in the flood-affected area near Mayur Vihar Phase 1.

Talking to the reporters Gambhir said, "1000-1500 people including children are stuck in the flood-affected area near Mayur Vihar Phase 1. I have spoken to the District Magistrate (DM) to provide a boat to rescue them."

Hitting out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Gambhir said that he should be questioned on how much money has his government spent on city infrastructure.

As parts of Delhi close to the Yamuna battles an overflowing river, police and other agencies on Wednesday evacuated more than 750 people and more than 250 cattle, officials said.

In one such incident, a man was found perched on a tree by a police team patrolling in a boat to track if anyone was trapped. It was later found that he had been sitting there for 22 hours to save himself, the police said.

Over 499 roads across Uttarakhand have been blocked due to landslides and major rivers flowing across the state are in spate, amid heavy rains that have resulted in inundation and waterlogging, officials said on Wednesday.

The Dehradun unit of India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for the next two days and a red alert for Saturday and Sunday, with a forecast of heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning at isolated places of the state.

Uttarakhand has reported 30.2 mm rainfall for 24 hours (up to 8.30 am Wednesday), with maximum 51.3 mm rain in Almora, followed by 46.6 mm in Dehradun, 43.6 mm in Rudraprayag, 43 mm in Pauri Garhwal, 33.8 mm in Uttarkashi, 38.3 mm in Tehri Garhwal and 30.6 mm in Haridwar.

The Yamuna River is expected to reach its peak flow at the Delhi Railway Bridge site at 9am on Thursday, resulting in a water level of approximately 208.30m, which is 2.97m above the danger mark. Following this, the water level is anticipated to remain stable for a few hours before gradually receding from around 2pm, according to the latest forecast by the Central Water Commission (CWC). Read our full copy here

Delhi: Yamuna water level reaches 208.05 metres at 10 pm, according to Central Water Commission.

The Himachal Pradesh government on Wednesday claimed to have shifted to safety about 25,000 tourists from Kullu and Manali in the past three days but hundreds remain stranded as more than 1,100 roads are still closed due to landslides and floods, PTI reported.

All concerned District Magistrates (District North, North-East, Shahdara, Central, East, and South-East) and their district Sector Committees, I&FC Department, Delhi Disaster Management, Delhi Police and other stakeholders are on alert mode to deal with the flood situation in coordination with each other. People living in low-lying areas & who were required to be evacuated at this stage, have been evacuated & shifted to safer places at higher altitudes, an official statement.

Roads you should avoid as overflowing Yamuna River disrupts Delhi traffic Read our detailed report

The monsoon will weaken a bit tomorrow but will again intensify from July 14 with heavy rainfall in Himachal Pradesh for the next four to five days, a senior meteorological department official said on Wednesday. Read our detailed report here

“At present, it is likely that peak of flow will reach at Delhi Railway Bridge site during 8:00 to 10:00 hrs on 13/07/2023 leading to the water level of about 208.00 m. Thereafter, it is likely to stay steady for few hours and to start falling down at around 14:00 hrs,” tweeted Central Water Commission

Delhi LG VK Saxena calls a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority tomorrow to discuss the flood situation in the national capital. CM Arvind Kejriwal will also take part in this meeting, ANI reported.

The overflowing Yamuna River has caused traffic problems on the Ring Road between the Monastery and the ISBT Kashmere Gate. In the event of flooding at the ISBT Kashmiri Gate, buses from Ghaziabad would be diverted to the Seelampur Metro Station. Other vehicular traffic from Ghaziabad will be detoured to Pushta Road, Delhi Traffic Police informed.

Constant rains in the past several days in Delhi and adjacent areas have caused the Yamuna to surge in water level. Moreover, the recent discharge of water from the Hathni Kund Barrage from Haryana has risked flooding in low-lying communities along the river.

"Traffic movement is affected on Bhairon Road due to overflow of drain water near Railway Under Bridge. Commuters are advised to avoid the stretch," tweeted Delhi Traffic Police

Yamuna River in Delhi's North district continues to flow in extreme flood situations with a water level of 207.81m at 18:00 hrs. The river is rising rapidly at a rate of 39.99 mm/hr, surpassing its Danger Level of 205.33m by 2.48m and exceeding the previous Highest Flood Level (HFL) of 207.49m recorded in 1978 by 0.32m.

"Delhi got washed away in the flood because the money for development works was spent on publicity! I am constantly monitoring the relief work and food will be delivered to all the victims from our Jan Rasoi on a daily basis!" BJP MP Gautam Gambhir tweeted.