MUMBAI: For over a week, the disaster management cell's
control room
in the state secretariat has been tracking the floods in western
Maharashtra 24x7, coordinating with local agencies and defence forces for rescue and relief work.
The seven hotlines here have been ringing off the hook since August 4 when heavy rain began to disrupt life and transport services. Officials said they were receiving over 500 calls a day. The control room also coordinates with the irrigation wing, which sends alerts on rising levels in dams and discharge that could affect downstream areas.
"For the first four days, the phones would not stop ringing and we were coordinating with multiple agencies simultaneously. A lot of logistical arrangements had to be made," said Abhay Yawalkar, director of the disaster managment cell. He said they also set up two WhatsApp groups for staff, police and defence personnel, IAS officers and ministers, to coordinate relief. "Over 1,000 messages were exchanged on the two groups in a day," said Yawalkar.
"We mobilised 105 resc- ue teams. We were also airli- fting rescue teams from oth- er states like Orissa and Pu- njab," said Yawalkar. The control room has also provided updates to the Centre.