The Hindu 20.10.2010
Narrow escape for residents as old water tank collapses
Special Correspondent
| Gushing water breaks compound walls, floods houses |
Another tank with a capacity of 2 lakh gallons is being constructed in the locality
Residents say that they had complained about the condition of the tank many times
Vestiges:The remains of the water tank that collapsed at Samata Colony in Gulbarga on Monday night In the background is the new overhead tank under construction
GULBARGA: A dilapidated overhead water tank in the thickly populated Samata Colony here collapsed on Monday night. “The water tank came crashing down with a loud sound, causing panic in the locality,” said Sunil Kulkarni, bank officer and resident of the colony. The water tank, which had a storage capacity of 1 lakh gallons, provided drinking water to Samata, Raghavendra and New Raghavendra colonies, and parts of Brahmpur and Ganga Nagar. The city corporation authorities supplied water to these localities in tankers on Tuesday. The Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board (KUWSDB) and the Gulbarga City Corporation authorities had decided to dismantle the tank. They had begun construction of another water tank with a capacity of 2 lakh gallons next to the old one.
It was a lucky escape for people living in the vicinity as the tank was full when it collapsed. The compound walls of many structures were washed away and water entered nearby houses. Even after midnight no senior official from the city corporation or the district administration had turned up.
The police and fire-fighters removed the debris and pumped water from the flooded houses.
The heavy rain on Monday afternoon also helped avert casualties, indirectly. “At least 15 to 20 people sleep under the water tank usually, but the ground was soggy after the rain and this forced everyone to stay indoors,” said Venkatesh Acharya. Official sources said that tenders had been floated to dismantle the old water tank. The dismantling process had been delayed as work on the new tank was yet to be completed. The residents of the Samata Colony said that they had complained several times to the city corporation authorities about the condition of the water tank.
