TIRUNELVELI: Widespread rain lashed Tirunelveli and Tenkasi districts on Sunday, raising dam levels and prompting a ban on tourists bathing at Courtallam. Meanwhile, storm warning cage no. 1 was hoisted at the VOC Port in Thoothukudi in view of a storm brewing in the Bay of Bengal.

As per the forecast from the Regional Meteorological Centre, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi and Thoothukudi districts received rain accompanied by strong winds and lightning from early Sunday morning.

Rain lashed Papanasam, Vikramasingapuram, Panagudi, Manur and surrounding areas, while Palayamkottai, Perumalpuram, Vannarpettai, Town and Thachanallur in Tirunelveli city also received heavy rain. Most people stayed indoors on the weekend holiday. In Manur, a cow died after being struck by lightning.

Inflow into the dams increased thanks to heavy rains in the Western Ghats. The level at Papanasam dam, which has a capacity of 143 feet, rose by a foot to nearly 56 feet. It is receiving 670 cubic feet of water per second. The level at the Servalar dam is 70.37 feet, and at the Manimuthar dam is 63.78 feet.

The Gundar dam, which has a capacity of 36 feet, has crossed 34 feet, with an inflow of 21 cubic feet per second. The level at Kadana dam is 60.50 feet, the Ramanathi dam at 52 feet and the Karuppanathi dam at 48 feet.
As of Sunday morning, Uthu recorded the highest rainfall in Tirunelveli district at 26 mm. Nalumukku recorded 23 mm, Kakkachi 17 mm, Papanasam 16 mm, Manjolai 11 mm, the Kodumudiyar dam area 5 mm, the Servalar dam area 5 mm, Manimuthar 4.20 mm and Radhapuram 3 mm.

In Tenkasi district, Gundar recorded the highest rainfall at 35 mm. Tenkasi and Sengottai recorded 15 mm each, Ramanathi 10 mm, Kadananathi 9 mm and Ayikudi 7 mm. As the flow increased in all the waterfalls at Courtallam and Manimuthar, tourists were barred from bathing there, disappointing many tourists who had arrived for the weekend.

Meanwhile, Thoothukudi remained cloudy from Sunday morning. A sudden heavy downpour around 11 am lasted about 30 minutes, followed by occasional drizzle. Rainwater stagnated in low-lying areas. To alert ships arriving at VOC Port, storm warning cage no. 1 was hoisted. Ships were advised to travel along safe routes, and fishermen who had gone deep-sea fishing were told to return to shore. All fishermen were advised not to venture out until October 29.