Two deaths, crop damage as rains batter Vellore

Check dam overflows in Andhra Pradesh; Palar, Mannar rivers swell; fields inundated
The inundated Palar river near Vaniyambadi in Tirupattur district on Friday | Express
The inundated Palar river near Vaniyambadi in Tirupattur district on Friday | Express

VELLORE: Torrential showers pounded several parts of Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, and Tirupattur on Friday, killing two people, and triggering flooding, inundation of farmlands and damage of a key ghat road connecting Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

The deceased are A Ravindran (31) of Kollaimedu and R Arjunan (48) of Karikathur, who were buried alive in a huge mass of sand while deepening an irrigation well at Polur in Tiruvannamalai. Another labourer escaped with injuries. 

Overflowing of a check dam in Andhra Pradesh led to the Palar and Mannar rivers in Tirupattur district witnessing heavy inflow of water. The Mannar recorded a flow at a rate of about 8,000 cusec as the catchment in Velathikamanipenda received good rainfall, according to officials of State Water Resources Department.

As the check dam at Pullur in Andhra Pradesh (on the Palar river) began to brim, the Vaniyambadi stretch of the river began to swell. “The volume of water received in the Palar could be between 12,000 and 14,000 cusec on the day because of water flowing down from the check dam and Mannar river,” said an official. Sub-paths and low-level bridges in certain places, including Ambalur, too, were submerged in the flood waters.

Farmlands adjacent to the rivers also were inundated resulting in crop damage. The Jalagamparai falls in the district witnessed heavy flooding as well. Tirupattur Collector Amar Kushawha visited the flooded areas at Ambalur and directed local authorities to relocate people from the low-lying areas. Meanwhile, the ghat road connecting Kuppam in Andhra Pradesh and Velathikamanipenda in Tirupattur was damaged near a bridge at Ponniamman temple. The collector ordered the Highways Department to repair the road.

Heavy rains also lashed several parts of Tiruvannamalai, with Arani recording 115.50 mm rainfall (till 8 am) on the day. Stormwater entered houses at VAK Nagar, Baskar Nagar, Jayalakshmi Nagar and Thenaruvi Nagar in Arani, leaving people in dire straits. Several streets and roads in the silk town also were inundated. Parts of Vellore and Ranipet were also pounded by rains. Several places received between 31 and 77 mm rainfall.

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