Rural Thiruvananthapuram battered by rains as southern districts brace for heavy downpour

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The rural parts of Thiruvananthapuram witnessed intense rain, while
high tides were reported from the coastal areas as the district is bracing for a possible torrential rainfall owing to depression in the Arabian sea.

Predicting a heavy rainfall of over 24 mm downpour in 24 hours, the Indian Meteorological Department has issued a red alert in three southern districts- Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Pathanamthitta- for
Friday.

The rural parts of the district witnessed gusty winds accompanied by heavy downpour, while the low-lying areas in the city were partly inundated due to moderate rains.

The district administration on its part has initiated measures to deal with any possible contingencies. The Fire and Rescue Department officials made haste visits to the flood-prone areas on Thursday late
night to assess the situation.

The Fire and Rescue Department received as many as seven distress calls on the day, while control rooms were opened in all the Fire Force stations in the coastal areas. The coastal areas have been experiencing strong wave attacks and the locals said they expect the sea to turn more violent in case of a heavy downpour.

Fire and Rescue Department officials of Chenkalchoola station said they were closely monitoring the situation along the banks of Karamana and Killiyar rivers. The water inflow has been steadily increasing in
Peppara and Aruvikkara dams owing to heavy rains in the catchment areas.

The boundary wall of a house caved in near Thekkinmoodu on Thursday owing to heavy rain. However, no injuries were reported in the incident.