Rainfall has been fairly widespread across the State, and the trend is likely to continue over the next few days with a low pressure area expected to form in the Bay of Bengal by Sunday.
“Due to further strengthening of southwesterly winds from Arabian Sea and the likely formation of a low pressure area over west-central and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal off Odisha coast by July 11 (Sunday), enhanced rainfall activity with fairly widespread to widespread rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy falls is very likely along the west coast and adjoining peninsular India and is very likely to continue during next five days,” the India Meteorological Department (IMD) Meteorological Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, noted on Saturday.
The IMD has issued yellow and orange alerts for Kerala till July 14. Northern districts such as Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod are on orange alert on Sunday, given the possibility of isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall.
Yellow alerts for isolated heavy rainfall have been issued for the remaining districts except Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam. Kannur and Kasaragod are on orange alert on July 12 while several districts have been put on yellow alert till July 14, according to a 4 p.m. update by the IMD.
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority has advised people residing in low-lying areas, river banks, and landslip-prone regions to be on their guard in view of the weather alert. Local bodies and State government agencies have been directed to complete disaster management preparations in the regions hit by floods and landslips in 2018, 2019 and 2020 and regions identified as vulnerable to natural calamities.
The IMD has advised fishermen not to venture out to sea till July 14 as strong winds gusting to 65 kmph are expected along the Kerala and Karnataka coasts and the Lakshadweep region.
The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services has forecast high waves in the range of 2.5 metres to 3.3 metres along the Kerala coast from Vizhinjam to Kasaragod till Sunday night. Coastal erosion has been particularly severe along the Kerala coast in recent years.
