Fifteen districts in coastal Karnataka, Malnad and South and North Karnataka have been issued yellow alert, with a forecast of heavy rain in isolated pockets in a region over the next two days.
Monday saw heavy rain in coastal Karnataka and Malnad districts such as Shivamogga. One rain-related death was reported from Udupi, while a fisherman was missing at sea at Dakshina Kannada.
“The rain is a result of the combined effect of Cyclone Amphan in the Bay of Bengal impacting pockets of the State and an independent offshore trough off Kerala coast in the Arabian Sea,” said G.S. Srinivas Reddy, director, Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC).
The districts given a yellow alert are: Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi in coastal Karnataka, Shivamogga, Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru and Hassan in Malnad region, Bengaluru Urban, Ramanagaram, Tumakuru, Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, and Mandya in South Karnataka, and Ballari and Raichur in North Karnataka.
Meteorological Centre, Bengaluru, has also forecast heavy rain, thunderstorm and lightning accompanied by gutsy winds of 30-40 kmph speed in pockets of coastal Karnataka, South and North Interior Karnataka over the next 24 hours. KSNDMC predicts rain to lash pockets of the State for the next two to three days, following which the impact of both Cyclone Amphan and the offshore trough the Arabian Sea will blunt, Dr. Reddy said.
In Kodagu, the authorities have requested the public to be alert and seek help from them in case of an emergency. Floods and landslips for two consecutive years had battered Kodagu, causing extensive damage. The officials have shifted focus to monsoon preparedness, identifying vulnerable areas based on the previous calamities.