Heavy rains lash Kerala, red alert issued in Ernakulam, Idukki and Thrissur
With heavy rains lashing various parts of the state since
Saturday night, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday declared a
red alert in the central Kerala districts of Ernakulam, Idukki and Thrissur for
the day.
The heavy rains led to water level in various dams in the
state rising to the red alert mark, prompting the government to open one of the
shutters of Cheruthoni dam of Idukki reservoir in the afternoon.
Kerala Water Resources Minister Roshy Augustine, in a
Facebook post, said that in view of heavy rains in southern parts of the state,
it has been decided to raise the shutters of the dam by 40 centimetres at 2.00
PM to control the rising water level there.
The water level of the Idukki reservoir at 10.00 AM was at
2398.80 feet, close to the red alert mark of 2399.03 feet.
The water level in various places along the Periyar was seen
to be rising during the heavy rains in the morning, according to the state
government.
The heavy rains inundated roads in several parts of southern
Kerala, which also saw landslides in some parts.
Adding to this, the Tamil Nadu government on Sunday morning
announced that the water level in the Mullaperiyar dam reached 140 feet,
indicating the likelihood of its shutters being also opened if the water
continues to raise.
As a result, people living on both sides of the Periyar should be extra vigilant as the shutters of the dam could be opened in the next 24 hours if water level rises further and there was a possibility that excess water would overflow, the Idukki district administration said earlier in the day.
The district administration of Pathanamthitta, which too
received heavy rainfall, has advised extreme caution, especially by those
living close to river banks or landslide prone areas.
It advised moving people in landslide and flood prone areas
to relief camps.
Visuals on news channels showed submerged roads in various
parts of Pathanamthitta and Kollam districts, where an orange alert has been
declared.
Incessant rains caused minor landslips and disruption of train
services in some parts of Kerala on Saturday, prompting authorities to sound
extreme caution in hilly areas, river sides and tourist centres.
The IMD on Saturday had predicted extremely heavy rains in
Thiruvananthapuram, while very heavy rainfall was forecast for Kollam,
Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam and Idukki districts.
Thunderstorms coupled with lightning are also very likely to
occur at one or two places in the state till November 16, according to the IMD.
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