Heavy rain in Kerala leaves many roads water-logged; ‘Orange’ alert for Idukki, 6 other districts
Thiruvananthapuram: Several parts of Kerala on Friday witnessed waterlogging on Friday after the state received over 200 mm of rain in the last 24 hours. Many places in major cities including Kochi and Thrissur were inundated after incessant downpur.
Visuals surfaced on social media show vehicles wading through waterlogged streets in parts of Kerala as the southern state reels under the impact of heavy pre-monsoon rains. Most of the shops remained shut and some of the adjacent roads were closed. Reports of trees being uprooted, road damage and minor landslides were also reported from various parts of the state.
#WATCH | Vehicles wade through waterlogged streets in parts of Kerala’s Ernakulam as the region continues to receive heavy rain
‘Orange’ alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall issued in the city for today pic.twitter.com/TYzUW58fkz
— ANI (@ANI) May 24, 2024
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) today issued an Orange alert for several districts. The alert has been sounded for Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Allapuzha, Kannur, Ernakulam, Idukki and Kozhikode districts. A red alert indicates heavy to extremely heavy rain of over 20 cm in 24 hours, while an orange alert denotes very heavy rainfall of 11 cm to 20 cm, and a yellow alert means heavy rainfall between 6 cm and 11 cm.
Elaborate arrangement to face any untoward incidents
Meanwhile, the state government has made an elaborate arrangement to prevent any eventualities. State Revenue Minister K Rajan said that local authorities, Fire force, the police and Revenue department were on standby to tackle any untoward incidents. He also said that two teams of the NDRF were currently in the state.
“Such heavy rainfall in a short span of time will lead to various incidents and we need to arrange facilities accordingly,” Rajan said. In wake of the incessant rains, a state control room was set up in the Health Department Directorate at Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday as part of efforts to strengthen epidemic prevention activities.