Geology Department team to visit landslide-prone areas

KOCHI: A team from the Geology Department will visit the landslide-prone areas in the district on Wednesday. The team will assess the ground situation and file a report to the District Collector on the possibility of landslides and the precautionary measures to be taken to avoid calamities.
The decision to conduct a field inspection was taken in view of the incessant rain lashing the district for the past one week.

Kadavoor and Vellurkunnam in Muvattupuzha taluk and Kuttampuzha in Kothamangalam taluk are considered to be landslide prone areas in the district. According to the Geology Department officers, the heavy rainfall that lashed Ernakulam district during the past one week has been unprecedented. On Monday alone, the district received 23 cm of rainfall.

As per the data available with the Meteorological Department, the district received 36 per cent excess rainfall during the monsoon season this year from June 1 to July 17. While the normal rainfall during this period is 1,093.6 mm, the district has received 1,486.5 mm rainfall till Tuesday.

According to Kerala University Geology Department Assistant Prof Sajin Kumar K S, landslides occur when the thin veneer of soil in the sloped terrain gets saturated with water.

“The time required for a soil column to get saturated depends on the thickness of the top soil. Previous studies point to a maximum of five days of antecedent rainfall for the thin veneer of soil seen in Kerala to get saturated,” he said.  

The District Geology Department has also recommended stop blasting activities in the 120-odd granite quarries in the district to avoid landslides. The ban will be applicable to red earth quarries also.