The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday issued a five-day weather alert for Kerala, predicting widespread rain accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning across the state. Severe downpours have been forecast for today, Saturday, October 17, with all fourteen districts placed under active weather alerts.

According to official meteorological data, five districts are under an orange alert today for very heavy rainfall, whilst nine districts face yellow alerts.

Five districts under orange alert today

An orange alert is in place for Thiruvananthapuram, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, and Kannur on October 17. Weather officials define very heavy rainfall under an orange alert as measuring between 115.6 mm and 204.4 mm within 24 hours, or 12 cm to 20 cm at isolated places. Thunderstorms and heavy showers are expected to affect these five districts throughout the day.

Meanwhile, a yellow alert covers Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, and Kasaragod today. In these nine districts, isolated heavy rainfall ranging between 64.5 mm and 115.5 mm (or 7 cm to 11 cm) in 24 hours is expected.

Accompanying the rain, gusty winds reaching speeds of 40 to 50 km/h along with lightning are very likely at isolated locations across Kerala and neighbouring Lakshadweep today. Heavy rainfall between 7 cm and 11 cm is also forecast for isolated places in Lakshadweep on October 17.

District-wise weather forecast for coming days

The rainfall activity will persist across Kerala over the coming days. Isolated heavy rainfall measuring between 7 cm and 11 cm in 24 hours is predicted to continue from October 18 to 23.

For Sunday, October 18, yellow alerts remain in force for five northern districts: Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, and Kasaragod. On Monday, October 19, Thrissur and Palakkad will join these five northern districts under yellow alerts.

Rainfall will shift towards central and southern districts later in the week. On Tuesday, October 20, yellow alerts will cover eight districts, including Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, and Thrissur. By Wednesday, October 21, yellow alerts will extend to ten districts, adding Palakkad and Malappuram to the previous eight.

Thunderstorm warnings and advice for travellers

Thunderstorms accompanied by lightning are likely to occur at isolated places across Kerala and Lakshadweep from October 18 to 21.

Travelers and locals moving across the state, especially through hilly or low-lying areas, are advised to stay informed about daily weather updates amidst continuous heavy rain and gusty wind warnings.