IDUKKI: For Munnar residents, the telltale signs of downpour and rising water level in Kannimala, Nallathanni and Muthirapuzha rivers these days bring back the bad memories of the epic flood of July 1924.
In that annus horribilis, Munnar hill station went under water for three days and it left the town with indelible scars. As per the data available in the old British records, rain came down in torrents into the hill town of Munnar on July 16 1924, which recorded 12.5 inches of rain in a single day.
Without any respite, a total of 13 inches showered down on the hill station on July 17.
The plantation sector in Munnar suffered the worst fury with many buildings, churches, roads and bridges that dotted the hill town being completely washed away.
The old Aluva-Munnar route through Kothamangalam, Kuttampuzha and Mankulam became unnavigable due to landslides (although the road was reconstructed till Pooyamkutty later), and was completely abandoned. The Kundala Valley Railway, the narrow gauge railway line in Munnar was completely destroyed in the deluge.
Similar to what happened a century ago, and around the same time of the year, Nallathanni, Kannimala and Kundala rivers have been welling up since Monday. The rising water is gradually spilling into communities settled on the river banks.
Devikulam Sub-Collector Jayakrishnan V M told TNIE that based on the report received from the Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, a research university, through its Landslide Early Warning System (LEWS) deployed at Anthoniar Colony, in Munnar, that the location was landslide-prone, the residents were immediately evacuated from the Colony area on Tuesday. “Apart from those settled in Anthoniar Colony, residents have been evacuated from M G Colony and New Colony areas,” he said.
The sub-collector said a total of 33 people are staying in the camp opened at the Mount Carmel Church in Munnar. Some residents have moved to relatives’ houses nearby.
He said officials were strictly monitoring the situation in Munnar to prevent a repeat of last year’s calamities.
Flooding of Muthirapuzha was a frequent incident in Munnar until 2022 when the state water resources department successfully launched the Operation Smooth Flow Project in Muthirapuzha and its tributaries.
An official with the irrigation department in Munnar said they had successfully removed a total of 1.20 lakh cubic metres of silt deposited in the river besides widening the river at major locations, including Old Munnar, where flooding was frequent.
“Though follow-up action was not taken in the succeeding years, the project has helped a lot in preventing flooding in the hill town,” he said.
However, in the heavy downpour on Tuesday, mudslips were reported in various pockets of the town, including Kallar, Munnar Colony and on the Munnar - Periyavarai route.
A house was partially damaged in Munnar Colony where a mud ridge collapsed on Tuesday.
Day-night traffic banned on Gap Road
The Devikulam RDO said the district collector had banned night traffic through Gap Road on Monday. “Huge rocks fell on the highway during heavy rain on Monday night. Only one-way traffic is possible now and the rescue team is blasting and removing the boulders,” he said. The official said since chances of landslide and rock fall prevail on the highway, day and night traffic is restricted through the route.
100th anniv to be observed in Munnar
The 100th anniversary of the great flood will be observed at a three-day event at Government Engineering College in Munnar from July 17. An exhibition of rare collection of photos taken during the 1924 flood will be among the events held. A total of 100 lights will be lit by 100 participants near the Gandhi Statue at 6pm on July 17.