MADURAI: The district administration of Madurai, Sivaganga, Ramanathapuram, and Virudhunagar declared one-day holiday for schools on Monday following the incessant rain. Tenkasi, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli district had already declared holiday last night for both schools and colleges for Monday.
In a rain related incident, an elderly man was electrocuted to death in Thoothukudi town on Monday. The deceased, 75-year-old Palaniandi of Naaval Nagar in Thoothukudi town, died when he stepped on stagnant water where an electric cable was cut. His body was shifted to Thoothukudi GH for post mortem.
In the wake of severe rains, water levels in river Thamirabarani are in spate. As heavy rainfall had been predicted, Thoothukudi district collector K Elambahavath had called off the weekly grievance meeting. According to officials, over 22,000 cusecs of water is being discharged from Maruthur anaicut and 19,000 cusecs from Srivaikuntam anaicut.
Meanwhile, the low level bridge on Thamirabarani at Eral has submerged and the nearby high level bridge which was damaged during the rains a month ago, has been set right for traffic. As several areas in the district have been flooded, dewatering of rain water has been mooted.
In Tirunelveli, Manjolai hills received extremely heavy rain. According to the rainfall data, Oothu and Naalumukku stations in the hills recorded 23.2 cm and 22 cm respectively. Kakkachi (21cm), Manjolai (19cm), Ambasamudram (8cm), Papanasam (7.6cm), and Nanguneri (6.5cm) received heavy rain in the district.
Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR) administration banned entry to Manimuthar and Agasthiyar falls due to the flood. In a statement ahead of orange alert, a 26-member State Disaster Response Force team has arrived, while 28 personnel from the National Disaster Response Force have been kept on standby. People can contact the toll-free number 1077 or 0462-2501070 any time. Information can also be shared through the Vanakkam Nellai WhatsApp number 9786566111.
In Kanniyakumari, the incessant rainfall brought more than 2,000 cusecs of water in Pechiparai and Perunchani dams. As Pechiparai dam storage reached 40.51 feet, 1,000 cusecs surplus water was discharged into Kodayar and Kuzhithuraiyar rivers. Bathing ban continued for the second day at Thirparappu falls. For the last 24 hours, most of the places registered moderate and light rain.
In Ramanthapuram, 9 cm rainfall was reported in Chitturvadi, Sekkanthidal and Karugalakudi areas, while other areas in the district recorded 1.5 to 5 cm average rainfall till Monday.
In Madurai district T Kallupatti area recieved the highest of 6.4 cm rainfall, while other areas got sporadic rainfall throughout the night.
Virudhunagar district recorded a total of 6.6 cm of rainfall, with an average of 5.5 cm. According to the rainfall report, Sivakasi received the highest rainfall at 9.9 cm.
In Dindigul, the school education department allowed schools in Kodaikanal taluk to declare holiday based on weather conditions.
In Sivaganga, according to 24 hours rainfall data till 6 am of Monday, the district recorded an average of 5.8 cm rainfall.
(With inputs from Jeyalakshmi from Madurai, Thinakaran from Tirunelveli, Godson from Thoothukudi, Abdul Rabi from Kanniyakumari, Saravanan from Dindigul, Thanaraj from Ramanathapuram, Harini from Virudhunagar and Vignesh from Sivaganga)
