Representative image | Photo: PP Ratheesh
Thiruvananthapuram: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecasted heavy rain in Kerala. With this, red, orange and yellow alerts have been sounded in various districts.
Thiruvananthapuram district has been placed under red alert on Saturday as the district is likely to receive extremely heavy rains.
Isolated places across the state are likely to witness heavy downpour till Tuesday.
Orange alert
Saturday - Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki
Sunday - Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Kasaragod
Monday - Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasaragod
Yellow alert
Saturday – Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasaragod
Sunday – Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur
Monday – Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod
Tuesday – Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasaragod
Thunderstorms coupled with lightning are also very likely to occur at one or two places in the state till November 16, according to IMD.
CM urges to excercise caution
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, in a Facebook post, said in view of the heavy rains, emergency relief camps would be opened in landslide/landslip and flood prone areas. As the westerly winds gaining strength in the southern state, the heavy rain situation is continuing in Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts, he said.
"As there is a possibility of widespread rainfall in the coming hours, directions have been given to show extreme vigil in high ranges, riversides and tourist centres," Pinarayi Vijayan said.
According to reports, a new low pressure area is likely to be formed in the Andaman Sea in the Bay of Bengal in the next 12 hours, and it was expected to reach the middle east side of the Bay of Bengal by November 15 and be strengthened as extreme low pressure.
Quoting the forecast of the Indian Meteorological Department, the CM also said there was a possibility of more rainfall than normal in Kerala in the next two weeks, from November 12-25.
Landslip, disruption of rail traffic
Incessant rains caused minor landslips and disruption of train service in some parts of Kerala on Saturday, prompting authorities to sound extreme caution in hilly areas, river sides and tourist centres as the weatherman issued a 'red alert' for Thiruvananthapuram district.
Widespread destruction was reported in Thiruvananthapuram district, which has been witnessing continuous heavy downpour since Friday night, prompting the district authorities to sound a vigil for people.
Incessant rains caused landslides in Neyyatinkara–Parassala rail route and in Eraniel - Kulithurai section and waterlogging in Nagercoil Junction- Kanniyakumari section, a southern railway statement said here.
Considering the safety, some train services in the routes were fully or partially cancelled, it added. A portion of a bridge, located on the national highway in the nearby suburb Neyyattinkara, was washed away in rains. Rainwater entered shops in the coastal hamlet of Vizhinjam as a canal there overflew.
The high ranges of the district especially Vithura, Ponmudi, Nedumangadu, Palode and so on are witnessing incessant rains. Meanwhile, the shutters of Aruvikkara and Peppara dams here were raised in the morning, the district authorities added.
A red alert indicates heavy to extremely heavy rains of over 20 cm in 24 hours, while orange alert denotes very heavy rains from 6 cm to 20 cm of rains. A yellow alert means heavy rainfall between 6 to 11 cm.
(with added inputs from PTI)