KOCHI: Heavy rain lashed south and central Kerala inundating low lying areas on Tuesday morning. Heavy rain caused water logging and traffic snarl ups at Edappally, Kakkanad, Infopark, Sahodaran Ayyappan Road, Ernakulam South railway station, KSRTC bus stand, Palarivattom, Kaloor Aluva, Thrikkakara, Kalamassery, Tripunithura, Fort Kochi, Thoppumpady, Mattancherry, Mundamveli and West Kochi areas.
"It was a real cloud burst in Kalamassery. The rain gauge at Cusat recorded 98.5 mm rainfall between 9.10 am and 10.10 am," said Cusat Advanced Centre for Atmospheric Radar Research director S Abhilash.
The house of writer M Leelavathi was flooded in the morning. Water rose to around 2 feet inside the house and several books were destroyed. The family members shifted the writer to another house. A huge tree uprooted and fell on a KSRTC bus at Fort Kochi on Tuesday morning. Police and Fire Force personnel removed the tree and restored traffic in the area.
Five fishermen who ventured into the sea on Tuesday morning had a miraculous escape after their boat capsized due to rough sea conditions.
“Around 8.30 am, an inboard engine country craft which ventured into the sea for fishing was caught in high waves and capsized near Saude church between Fort Kochi and Kannamali. The fishermen who were initially caught in the waves managed to swim to safety. The fishermen were wearing life jackets and this has helped them escape the strong waves and swim to the shore,” said Wilfred Manuel, a driver at Fort Kochi.
Meteorologists said conditions are favourable for the onset of monsoon as Kerala has been receiving heavy rain for the past few days and the westerly winds have strengthened. The IMD is expected to confirm the onset within a couple of days.
There are three conditions for confirmation of monsoon onset. The westerly winds should have a depth of 600 hpa, the outgoing long range radiation should be below 200 wm-2 and 60% of the 14 stations enlisted by the IMD should report more than 2.5 mm rainfall for two consecutive days. The enlisted stations are Minicoy, Amini, Thiruvananthapuram, Punalur, Kollam, Allapuzha, Kottayam, Kochi, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Thalassery, Kannur, Kudulu and Mangalore.
Rainfall recorded in Kochi from 8.30 am to 2.30 pm
Kalamassery: 157 mm
Palluruthy: 100 mm
Mattanchery: 54 mm
Keeraampara: 51 mm
and Choondi: 58 mm