The district collectors of Coimbatore and Nilgiris have announced holiday for schools and colleges in the districts on Friday due to incessant rainfall. The announcement came on Thursday evening, as Coimbatore and Nilgiris witnessed continuous rainfall for over 24 hours.
The rainfall, which started on Wednesday, continues to lash across the district. Dams in both the districts are filling up fast due to heavy rainfall in the Western ghats and Kerala.
Avalanche in Nilgiris district has recorded very heavy rainfall in the last 48 hours. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) data, the rainfall recorded in Avalanche was 82 cms from 8.30 am on Wednesday to 8.30 am on Thursday. Independent weather blogger Pradeep John, who goes by the name Tamil Nadu Weatherman, tells TNM that very heavy rainfall in Nilgiris and Upper Bhavani is normal during the south west monsoon season. "However, what we see right now is something unique. This very heavy rainfall recorded in Avalanche could break the previous record of 91 cms in Nilgiris easily," he adds.
The rainfall has led to a significant jump in the inflow of water into the dams of Tamil Nadu. The water inflow to Bhavanisagar dam near Sathyamangalam stood at 46,000 cusecs and the inflow to Pillur dam stood at over 38,000 cusecs as on Thursday. With heavy rainfall predicted for two more days in the region, the water flow is expected to increase.
Valparai in Coimbatore district also recorded heavy rainfall in the last 48 hours, resulting in waterlogging in many places in the area. Since the outflow from Pillur dam also stood at 38,000 cusecs on Thursday, the water in Bhavani river has risen. The district authorities have also reportedly issued warning to people living along the river to evacuate to higher land.
Parts of Kerala and Karnataka - including Kannur, Idukki, Malappuram districts in Kerala and Udupi, Uttara Kannada and Dakshina Kannada districts in Karnataka - have been receiving heavy to very heavy rainfall in the recent days. This has resulted in major flooding in those regions. Hundreds have been stranded and thousands of people have been evacuated to relief camps in both the states. The India Meteorological Department has issued red warning to four districts in Kerala and for Kodagu in Karnataka.
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