KOCHI : Heavy rains accompanied by gusty winds wreaked havoc in several parts of the district on Monday. Trees were uprooted and houses were damaged in various places, while a newly constructed road along a canal at Chembumukku caved in.
K X Simon, the Chembumukku councillor, told TNIE that the incident took place early in the morning. “Around 50 metres of the Assissi School Road caved in. The road was newly paved with tiles just two months ago and was constructed spending around Rs 38 -40 lakh,” he said.
The residents blamed the engineers and the contractor for the incident. “The road was not constructed properly. Instead of giving the retaining wall a strong base by using a granite base constructed from the bed of the canal, they set the structure on top of the soil. So, when heavy rain led to the oversaturation of the soil with water, the entire structure collapsed,” said the councillor.
In addition, three houses were damaged in Kunnathunadu, Muvattupuzha, and Elanji after trees were uprooted by strong winds. Fortunately, no casualties were reported.
Heavy damage to KSEB installations
The downpour also caused extensive damage to power distribution systems across the state, especially in central Kerala, with uprooted trees and branches falling on power lines, said KSEB. “Hundreds of High Tension and Low Tension posts got broken. Several transformers too have been damaged. The initial estimate of the damage comes in lakhs of rupees,” said the Board in a statement.
KSEB emphasised that its staff is working around the clock to restore power as soon as possible. They urged customers to cooperate and report any accidents or risks to the nearest KSEB Section Office or emergency number 9496010101. They also reminded people to be cautious around broken power lines and provided a toll-free customer care number, 1912, for reporting electricity-related complaints and availing services.
