A total of 4,035 people have been shifted to 49 relief camps opened across districts in Tamil Nadu due to incessant rains.
Published Aug 05, 2022 | 6:29 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 05, 2022 | 6:50 PM
Due to the incessant rains, several reservoirs in the state are nearing or have already attained full capacity. (South First)
The Southwest monsoon, in addition to unleashing its fury in Kerala, has also impacted Tamil Nadu.
Since the onset of the season — on 1 June — to 4 August, the state has received a total of 256.3 mm of rainfall, which is 99 percent higher than the normal rainfall during this period over the years.
In the last 24 hours, Tamil Nadu received an average of 10.59 mm of rainfall, with the Nilgiris district topping the rain charts with 67.50 mm.
Due to the incessant rains, several reservoirs in the state are nearing or have already attained full capacity.
Excess water was discharged from the Mettur dam (1.80 lakh cubic feet of surplus water), Bhavanisagar (7,000 cubic feet), and the Vaigai dam (2,656 cubic feet), among other reservoirs.
Accordingly, the state government has issued an alert for people living in low-lying areas or on the banks of rivers like Cauvery, Kollidam, and Bhavani.
As per a statement issued by Tamil Nadu’s Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management KKSSR Ramachandran, a total of 4,035 people have been shifted to 49 relief camps opened across the state, with the maximum number of people (1,543) being displaced in Namakkal district.
According to local reports, floodwater has entered villages and houses in the Namakkal, Erode, Mayiladuthurai, and Nilgiris districts, and agricultural fields were also inundated in Trichy and other areas where the river Cauvery was in spate.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Thursday held a review meeting with district collectors and other senior officials to monitor the measures being taken to counter rain-related issues.
Collectors of the Ariyalur, Cuddalore, Erode, Karur, Mayiladuthurai, Nagapattinam, Namakkal, Salem, Thanjavur, Trichy, Tiruppur, and Thiruvarur districts participated in the meeting.
According to the government, the combined storage levels in 90 reservoirs across the state on Thursday reached over 86 percent of their capacity.
Specific instructions have been given to officials not to increase the amount of water discharged from reservoirs without giving prior intimation to the people.
Fearing crop damage due to the pounding rains, the chief minister has also instructed officials to visit the spot and ascertain the losses at the earliest.
Five teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been stationed at Trichy (two), Nilgiris (two) and Namakkal (one), while six teams of the Tamil Nadu SDRF have been deployed in Trichy, Erode, Namakkal, Kanyakumari, Coimbatore, and Nilgiris for rescue and relief activities.
The regional meteorological department has predicted heavy to very heavy rains at isolated places over the Nilgiris and Coimbatore districts, and heavy rain at isolated places over the Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Erode, Tiruppur, Salem, and Kallakurichi districts on Friday, 5 August.
The meteorological department issued a forecast of heavy rains over Nilgiris and Coimbatore districts for Saturday.
In case of rain-related emergencies, people can reach out to the State Emergency Operations Centre helpline on 1070 and 1077, and also through WhatsApp on 94458 69848.
