THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With catchment areas receiving heavy rain, shutters of the Aruvikkara barrage and the Peppara dam were raised on Thursday. Two shutters of the Aruvikkara barrage have been raised up to 50cm and one up to 40cm. In Peppara, power generation by KSEB is on with two shutters opened up to 15cm.
In Aruvikkara, the water level stood at 46.41m late on Thursday. The full reserve capacity of the barrage is 46.60m. In Peppara, the current water level is 106.20m, with the full reserve capacity of the dam being 107.50m. The shutters will be raised further should the inflow increase. Rain and heavy wind in the Nedumangad region damaged 41 houses while two were destroyed.
Meanwhile, four families in Tholicode were shifted to safer places after their houses were damaged.
Power supply was disrupted in many places after trees fell on electric posts. Restoration work was under way late into the night.“More than the rain, the heavy wind caused the damage,” said a district administration official.
“The situation is under control. Four families have been shifted to their relatives’ houses. The Tholicode region saw the maximum damage due to the wind. For now, the water level in Killiyar is stable. But if rain becomes heavier in the catchment area, the shutters could be raised further and that may increase the water level.”
In Vembayam, traffic was obstructed for over an hour after a tree fell on the road. Heavy rain wreaked havoc in Nedumangad town and its interior regions, inundating a few houses on the banks of Killiyar.
Within city limits, a rough sea resulted in water entering 20 houses in Cheriyamuttom, Poonthura.
Five families from the area have been shifted to relief camps. A meeting of the disaster management authority was held in the collectorate to evaluate the current situation in the district.