HYDERABAD,
India (AP) — Torrential rains killed 49 people in the southern
Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, where 5,000 people had to be evacuated
after flood waters inundated their homes, the state's chief minister
said.
Nearly half
the deaths took place in Guntoor district, 180 miles east of Hyderabad,
the state capital, Chandra Babu Naidu said late Wednesday.
Nine people
were killed in Guntoor when their hotel collapsed. The rest of
the deaths in Andhra Pradesh were caused by house collapses, lightning
strikes and drowning in rivers swollen by two days of incessant
rains, Naidu said.
"The
situation is grim. More heavy rains have been forecast for tomorrow,''
Naidu said.
Several feet
of water entered Nandyal, a town of 150,000 people located 170
miles south of Hyderabad. Air Force helicopters rescued all 53
people aboard a bus swept into a river, Naidu said.
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