Impact of Cyclone ‘Dana’: Closure of lock gates, canal surcharge delayed stormwater drainage, says Hakim
Kolkata: Cyclone ‘Dana’ brought heavy rain to Kolkata on Friday, flooding multiple areas and stranding commuters. Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) Mayor Firhad Hakim attributed the waterlogging to surcharged outfall canals and high tides in the Hooghly River, which kept the lock gates closed.
Severe waterlogging affected the entire city. In the south, areas like Jodhpur Park, Lake Gardens, Kalighat, Exide, and Behala were submerged.
In Lake Gardens Ward 93, TMC MP Saugata Roy inspected the streets after water entered his residence and said that this is a longstanding issue and complaints to KMC have brought no relief. Similarly in Behala Shakuntala Park residents claimed the problem has persisted for years with KMC failing to tackle the issue. In the north, Thanthania, Amherst Street, Bowbazar and Baranagar were also heavily waterlogged. Campuses of SSKM and Chittarnajan hospitals were also flooded.
Addressing the Press the Mayor said heavy rainfall for hours led to such inundation. He shared that till 12 pm on Friday, rainfall at Ballygunge pumping station area was 119 mm, Mominpur 104 mm, Chetla Lock Gate 99 mm, Jadavpur 141 mm, Kalighat 99 mm, CPT canal 103 mm, Kamdahari 120 mm. “KMC drainage system can only drain 20 mm of water in an hour. It takes three to four hours to drain when there is low tide after the rain stops,” Hakim said. “Abnormal rain will lead to waterlogging. Inundation at Thanthania and Amherst Street is a long-term issue. After desilting, now it takes only 3-4
hours,” he said. He explained that most outfall canals were surcharged and lock gates couldn’t be opened as the Hooghly’s water level remained above danger mark, even at low tide. “Opening the gates or draining the canals could have caused backflow of stormwater,” he said.
Hakim stated that over 400 drainage pumps across
boroughs were operational after 12 pm. “Waterlogging near Saugata Roy’s house was due to the Ballygunge pumping station being operational only after
12 pm,” he said.
