Hyderabad: Nine State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel went missing after two rescue boats capsized while they were attempting to rescue fishermen stranded in the floodwater of Betupally lake near Sathupally in Khammam district on Wednesday night.
Sathupally inspector T Sreehari said that, following an alert from local residents, SDRF personnel in two boats launched a rescue operation at around 6.30 pm. The incident occurred following a sudden increase in the inflow of floodwater into Betupally lake due to the impact of Cyclone Murasu, according to Khammam police. Following the incident, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, along with local police, launched a search operation to trace the missing SDRF personnel and the stranded fishermen.
Telangana State Special Police (TGSP) additional DG Sanjay Jain said nine SDRF personnel, comprising six members of the TGSP and three personnel from the fire department, were on board the two boats when they capsized in the floodwater. In a post on X, the minister said assisting rescue teams had reached the area and identified that the stranded SDRF personnel were safe in a nearby location. Three other fishermen who went to their rescue also got trapped in the floodwater. The team managed to rescue three fishermen. However, when the personnel returned in the two boats to rescue the remaining stranded fishermen, both boats capsized. Revenue minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, accompanied by Khammam collector T S Divakara and police officials, monitored the rescue operation at the lake. He added that measures had been initiated to bring them safely to the shore within the next hour. The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) also issued a statement on X, stating that CM A Revanth Reddy had taken serious note of the incident. He directed the district collector to take all necessary measures to ensure the safe return of the SDRF personnel. He also instructed the chief secretary to review the situation periodically and monitor the rescue operation.
On Wednesday evening, five fishermen who had gone to remove their fishing nets from the lake got stranded on a higher level as the water level rose rapidly.