When it rains, it pours

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:A little after 6 pm on Tuesday, the city witnessed a downpour which despite bringing respite to the surging heat, toppled the city life, left many major thoroughfares and link roads flooded.Among the many commuters who suffered the wrath of the rain was a woman, whose car got stuck in an inundated stretch near Vanchiyoor, with the front wheels getting pinned down in a pit. It was the firemen who rushed to her aid, and that was one case that got registered with the Fire and Rescue Services Department.

The pre-monsoon showers made its presence felt on Tuesday evening. As the heavy rains lashed the streets, the whole of the city was thrown into chaos, with traffic being disrupted at countless locations. People were left stranded with most of them wading through knee-deep waters. As the drainage system failed, many areas were submerged in water, with vehicles also getting stranded in the rain.
The rescue teams from the Fire and Rescue Services Department were on their toes from noon itself, with the final call being attended at 8 am on Wednesday morning.

Around four fire tenders comprising a crew of five firemen were pressed into service. In most cases, the downed trees had to be removed and that figured in the majority of the rescue calls. A few cases where rainwater entered the homes were also attended, the department informed.

Despite launching many measures and pumping money into several projects, the rain left many regions inundated. Waste clogging the drains and canals toppled the drainage system and muddy waters spilled onto the streets. The areas which were waterlogged include stretches near East Fort, Pazhavangadi, West Fort, Edappazhanji, Thampanoor, SS Kovil Road, Railway Station, Vellayamabalam, Jagathy, DPI junction, Vanchiyoor among others. “Even if it rains for half an hour, the area gets waterlogged. We have been grappling with the issue for years. Presently,  no efforts have been initiated to clean up the clogged drains and canals,” said Santhosh Kumar who resides in Vanchiyoor.

Meanwhile, the Corporation officials have maintained that a meeting was held Tuesday morning itself where the measures that need to be implemented as part of the pre-monsoon clean-up drive was discussed. “A total of five days have been designated for cleaning the drains in the city. Yesterday’s rain was quite unexpected. Normally, we expect the onset of rain only around June first week. The cleaning of the drains will start from Friday, in all the circles,” Mayor V K Prasanth said.“In fact, we had convened a meeting last month and initiated the cleaning of the drains in all the circles,” he said. “This is the second action-plan to mitigate the issue,” the Mayor added.