Friday evening in Moosanagar began with a gentle drizzle, followed by a brief downpour, then quiet. Around 8 p.m., Mohammed Yawar Ali’s family was busy preparing dinner — dal, rice, and minced meat — when panicked shouts erupted outside. Neighbors were scrambling, grabbing essentials and fleeing their homes. “We abandoned our uncooked meal in the kitchen and rushed to the road, just like everyone else,” recounted Mr. Ali, a tipper-auto driver. By 9 p.m., the floodwaters had risen dramatically, reaching his bike’s silencer, and astonishingly, had not receded an inch even 12 hours later.
The areas of Moosanagar and Chaderghat, situated directly beneath the bridge and adjacent to the Causeway, were hit hardest by the raging floodwaters. With the electricity supply deliberately cut off around 10 p.m. for safety, residents relied on the glow of mobile phones and distant streetlights to navigate the dark. Renuka and her family of five found refuge in the GHMC Community Hall at 9 p.m. “We received food at 11 p.m. last night, and now we’re just waiting for the water to go down,” she shared, sitting on a plastic sheet on the floor, a temporary barrier against the dampness.
Overflowing Musi floods houses abutting the river bank in Moosanagar, Hyderabad on Saturday. | Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL
Mohammed Khalid’s family quickly grabbed what they could — plastic chairs, Aadhaar cards, money, and mobile phones — and fled their home. His daughter, cradling her infant, made sure to bring milk and baby food before they all sought safety at a neighbor’s house on higher ground. “We had no electricity. The rainwater burst into our homes at 9 p.m., and we’ve been awake ever since, waiting outside for the water to finally go down,” explained Mohammed Khalid. His home, like many others in this river-adjacent locality, is typically bustling with scrap dealers, scavengers, auto drivers, daily wage laborers, and restaurant workers, all now displaced.
“Unlike previous years, there was no warning this time,” lamented Shaheen, who stood outside her flooded home. “Our clothes, food supplies, refrigerator, and beds are all ruined. We’re accustomed to floods, but a heads-up would have made all the difference.”
Overflowing Musi floods houses abutting the river bank in Moosanagar, Hyderabad on Saturday. | Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL
This sudden, unannounced flood was a direct consequence of intense rainfall within the catchment areas of the Osmansagar and Himayatsagar reservoirs. The Osmansagar catchment, spanning 738.15 square kilometers, covers Bulkapur, Shankarpally, Chandippa, Mominpet, Dhobipet, Chandanagar, and Ananthagiri. Himayatsagar boasts an even larger catchment of 1308 square kilometers, encompassing Venkatapur, Sultanpally, Parigi, Shamshabad, and Vikarabad. On Friday, several areas reported significant rainfall: Mominpet received 15 cm, Shabad 11.8 cm, Moinabad 11.6 cm, and Bantwaram 11.2 cm. By 8 p.m. that evening, a massive 30,000 cusecs of water was being released from both reservoirs, with 12 gates open at Osmansagar and 9 at Himayatsagar. This colossal volume, combined with an additional 1,620 cusecs from Hussainsagar merging at Golnaka, unleashed the devastating floods.
These severe rains occurred at the close of a monsoon season already marked by exceptional rainfall. Notably, 11 mandals in Rangareddy and four in Vikarabad experienced ‘large excess’ rainfall, exceeding 60% of their seasonal averages. Shabad mandal, for instance, saw an astounding 89% excess rainfall, and Nandigam recorded 72% above its seasonal average.