Heavy rain lashed the State on Wednesday causing severe waterlogging and damage in several districts, including Ernakulam, Thrissur and Kottayam. North and central Kerala districts can expect heavy to very heavy rainfall on Thursday also, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has indicated.

Most parts of Kochi city, including several thickly populated West Kochi areas, were inundated.

Heavy rain since Tuesday midnight brought life to a standstill in Kottayam on Wednesday. Traffic disruptions were reported from several locations across the district following flooding and uprooting of trees.

The Meenachil and Manimala rivers are in spate and breached the banks at several places. With a steady rise in water level, low-lying areas in the district are under the threat of inundation.

Compound wall collapses were reported from different locations. A house at Manarcaud was damaged. Damage to standing crops were reported from some locations.

Challenge

Official sources said the opening of relief camps along the low-lying areas from Vaikom to Changanassery, which reported a rapid rise in COVID-19 cases, would present a major challenge to the authorities this time.

In view of a heavy rain forecast, District Collector M. Anjana on Wednesday assessed the preparedness of various departments in the event of emergency situations. “Control rooms have started functioning at the taluk and local body levels and teams have been deployed to different locations for assessing the damage,” the Collector said.

Steps are in place to evacuate people from landslip-prone regions if the rain intensified further.

Landslips on the tracks near Muttambalam and Gandhinagar disrupted rail traffic.

Low-lying areas in Thrissur were waterlogged.

Many parts of Thiruvananthapuram district, including the city area, also experienced heavy rainfall and strong winds on Wednesday.