The Tamirabharani continues to be in spate as the Western Ghats experienced heavy downpour on Monday night.
The overnight widespread rainfall in the district, especially along the Western Ghats, ensured huge influx of water into the Papanasam Dam on Monday night. After discharging 15,000 cusecs of water from Papanasam, Servalar and Gadana Dams on Monday night following heavy rainfall in the catchment areas of these dams, quantum of water being released from these dams was reduced on Tuesday after rain relented. However, the heavy discharge of water from the reservoirs and the water entered the Tamirabharani from wild streams swelled the perennial river a lot.
As the low-level bridge at Karuppanthurai connecting Melapalayam and Tirunelveli Town was submerged by the swollen Tamirabharani, vehicular traffic via this busy stretch was hit.
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Since Manimuthar Dam has only 87% water (4,804 mcft against the maximum capacity of 5,511 mcft) and the influx of water stood only at 3,683 cusecs, no water was discharged from this reservoir.
Collector V. Vishnu, who declared holiday for the schools on Tuesday, alerted the people living close to the watercourse not to enter the river for taking bath. He stationed the special teams near the low-lying areas to monitor the situation and evacuate the people from vulnerable places to the nearby relief shelters.
A 100-year-old banyan tree at Kodesswaran Nagar got uprooted by the incessant drizzle on Tuesday to hit vehicular traffic on the Tirunelveli – Pettai Road. The Corporation, Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation and Fire and Rescue Services personnel removed the tree after three hours. No one was injured.
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Rainfall in the district (in mm): Papanasam Dam – 91, Manimuthar Dam – 84, Ambasamudram – 83, Servalar Dam – 71, Cheranmahadevi – 58, Nanguneri and Kalakkad – 53, Kodumudiyar Dam – 50, Moolaikkaraipatti – 41, Palayamkottai – 33, Nambiyar Dam and Radhapuram – 30 and Tirunelveli -23.
Tenkasi
Tenkasi district experienced widespread rainfall on Monday evening and in the night. All reservoirs are about to reach their maximum storage level. Since significant discharge of water from these dams in Chittar, all the systemized tanks under this irrigation tanks are getting decent inflow of water even as most of these water bodies are already overflowing.
Rainfall in the district (in mm): Aayikudi – 76, Gundar Dam – 67, Tenkasi – 56, Adavinainar and Gadana Dams – 45, Shencottai -44, Sivagiri – 40, Karuppanadhi Dam – 35, Sankarankovil – 26 and Ramanadhi Dam – 15.
Thoothukudi
Though Thoothukudi experienced intermittent rain, the stagnant water could not be immediately pumped out during the first 10 days. However, the heavy downpour that lashed district on November 17 and 25 exposed the corporation’s poor preparedness for facing the monsoon woes.
“If all the drainage channels traversing Thoothukudi and the Buckle Channel had been desilted thoroughly before the onset of monsoon, the water stagnation issue could have been effectively addressed. The situation got worsened as the sand accumulated beyond the bridge being used by the fishermen and traders in Terespuram area was not properly dredged. When the downpour drenched the town on November 17 and 25, the clogged Buckle Channel at its tail-end made the situation worse. Now, every resident of Thoothukudi is paying the hefty price for the corporation’s failure,” said a senior revenue official.
After a brief lull, widespread rain lashed the district on Monday night to worsen the situation further in Muthammal Colony, Ram Nagar, Rahmath Nagar, Athi Parasakthi Nagar, Dhanasekaran Nagar, Bryant Nagar, Chidambara Nagar, Rajiv Nagar and Kathirvel Nagar. Since hip-deep water has stagnated around the houses in Ram Nagar, Rahmath Nagar and Athi Parasakthi Nagar, the residents have started moving to their relatives’ houses.
“Since no step has been taken to drain the stagnant water, people are moving out,” said K. Ahmed Ali of Rahmath Nagar.
Agitated over the water stagnation woes, residents of Levingipuram staged a road roko on Thoothukudi – Tiruchendur Highway for a while on Tuesday.
As the district administration is battling the water stagnation issues across the district, especially in Thoothukudi, 50 one horse power motors and 10 heavy duty pumps have been procured from Coimbatore to accelerate the operation.
Collector K. Senthil Raj said the heavy duty pumps would be used to pump out water from the badly affected areas where natural gradient would drain the pumped out water into the nearby drainage channels carrying the water to Buckle Channel, the mega sewage channel draining sewage into the sea near Terespuram.
The plug and play 1 HP electric pumps attached with hose pipes will be given to public by corporation on temporary basis. “These motors with hose pipes can be plugged by the residents to pump the water out of their houses. If water is stagnating within their house or within their compound wall, public can contact corporation office, get this pumps, plug it inside their house, pump water out and return the pump to the corporation once the operation is over,” said Dr. Senthil Raj.
Rainfall in the district (in mm): Kaayalpattinam – 90, Kayathar – 59, Vaipaar – 50, Tiruchendur – 48, Saattankulam – 46, Vilaathikulam and Ottapidaaram – 36, Srivaikundam – 31, Kaadalkudi – 30, Kadambur – 29, Soorankudi – 26, Thoothukudi – 23, Kulasekarapattinam – 21, Kovilpatti – 19, Vedanaththam and Keezha Arasadi – 18, Ettaiyapuram – 17, Maniyaachi – 6,