Floods hit residential areas in Telangana’s Warangal; family escapes from car stuck in floodwaters

With heavy rain lashing several parts of the erstwhile Warangal district in Telangana on Monday (August 11, 2025) night, several low-lying areas, including NTR Colony, Santoshimata Colony, SC Colony, Sai Nagar Colony, Brindavan Colony, and areas near the Underbridge, were inundated forcing residents to wade through knee-deep water to reach their homes. This also prompted the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) to set up six relief centres.

Family escapes from car in floodwaters

In an incident near the Underbridge in the early hours of Tuesday, five members of a family reportedly managed to escape from their car, which was stuck in floodwaters, by breaking its windowpanes, according to sources.

Reason for flooding

The narrow construction of stormwater drains and the ongoing works of the underground drainage (UGD) system in the colonies under the jurisdiction of Warangal and Khila Warangal mandals — falling under the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) — were said to be the reasons for the flooding, according to Warangal district collector Satya Sharada Devi.

She added that Sangem mandal recorded extremely heavy rainfall of 24 cm, while Khila Warangal received 15 cm of rainfall in the last 24 hours. However, the absence of proper flood-preventive measures by the civic body allegedly led to the situation. An obstruction created at a religious centre has led to the inundation of several colonies. “We have alerted the GWMC officials several times and even submitted a memorandum to Mayor Gundu Sundharani three months ago, but it fell on deaf ears,” claimed Gande Kalpana, corporator from the 28th division under the GWMC.

Buckets and motors used to remove water from homes

The existing drainage network failed to copy the downpour, flooding colonies Gandhi Nagar, Balaji Nagar, Shanthi Nagar, Ursu Gutta, Doddi Komuraiah Nagar, Hanuman Nagar, Ekashila Nagar, Gokul Nagar, and Ambedkar Nagar. Residents Were Seen Using Buckets and Motor Pumps to Remove Water from their homes.

While a wall of a function hall collapsed in Kareemabad due to heavy rain, Warangal Railway Station also witnessed severe waterlogging. Authorities began evacuating slum dwellers to rehabilitation centres as a precautionary measure.

Phone numbers to report emergencies

The GWMC, along with two State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams, deployed personnel in low-lying areas to divert water into nalas and assist affected residents. Control rooms were set up, and citizens were advised to use the toll-free number 1800-425-1980 or WhatsApp 9701999676 to report emergencies. “We are trying to let out the floodwater by removing obstructions in the stormwater drains. We have also set up six relief centres to provide food and medicines to the affected people,” said GWMC commissioner Chahat Bajpai.