High alert sounded as heavy rain lashes in Thiruvananthapuram

The sandbar near the Veli estuary has been cut open to facilitate the flow of water into the river and people living in low-lying areas have been asked to remain alert.

Motorists turn on their lights during daytime in Thiruvananthapuram as the sun keeps behind a heavy bank of clouds on Friday, a day of heavy and widespread rainfall in Kerala.Photo:S.Gopakumar

The capital district has been put on high alert after rain continued to lash several areas. The district administration has issued a special alert notice to those residing on the shores of the Vamanapuram river.

District Collector Biju Prabhakar said the chances of opening the shutters of the Neyyar dam late in the night on Friday were high since the water level in the dam had touched 83.9 metres against the maximum level of 84.75 m. The sandbar near the Veli estuary has been cut open to facilitate the flow of water into the river and people living in low-lying areas have been asked to remain alert.

Serious situation

The Collector said the situation was ‘quite serious’ and added that control rooms would work round-the-clock at the district and taluk headquarters. Tahsildars and village officers had been asked to be on call without switching off their mobile phones.

Holiday today

The District Collector has declared a holiday for all educational institutions, including Kendriya Vidyalayas and professional colleges, on Saturday.

One dead

One person, Thankappan Asari, 69, of Uzhamalakkal at Aryanad, near Nedumangad, lost his life after a wall of his house collapsed on him around 5.30 p.m. on Thursday.

Thankappan succumbed to his injuries at the Government Medical College Hospital here late in the night.

In another incident, around 200 people, including police officers, Fire and Rescue Services personnel and local residents were trapped after the approach road to the Vazhvanthol waterfalls near Vithura got blocked. The group was on their way back after retrieving the body of Ashwin Ajay, who drowned in the river downstream on Thursday after the water level rose suddenly.

The group was reported to be cutting a path open through the Bonacaud forest to reach Vithura.

Additional Fire and Rescue Services units have been sent from the Thiruvananthapuram and Attingal sections to the area.

Ashwin, an engineering student hailing from Peroorkada, had reached the spot on Thursday along with his friends and was swept away by the surging water.

Rescue efforts till late on Thursday had proved futile.