Coastal dists in south battered; 13 cms pour in Palayamkottai

Many areas in Tirunelveli have been inundated. At Pettai, water entered many houses and people were forced to move to safety. The downpour did not spare commercial establishments too and goods worth several lakhs of rupees have been destroyed. Similarly, the junction and the old bus stands were marooned. Palayamkottai MLA TPM Mohideen Khan, said that water could not be drained out from the old bus stand because of the encroachments around int. Palayamkottai in Tirunelveli received the highest rainfall in the state with 13.4 cm. Tirunelveli town received 9.9 cm, followed by  Nambiyaru 8.2 cm. 

At Koothankuzhi coastal village in Tirunelveli district, boats along the coast were badly damaged. Tirunelveli Collector, Sandeep Nanduri, inspected the spot and assessed the damages. 

Most of the rivers in Kanniyakumari district have swollen and minor bridges across them were completely submerged. There was heavy flow in the Thiruparappu falls. As a precaution, officials have banned bathing at the popular tourist spot. 

At Thoothukudi and Rameswaram rains there was no rain till Wednesday night. However, Rameswaram experienced downpour for two hours on Thursday between 8.15 am and 10.15 am. There was water stagnation on many streets in Rameswaram, including those around Ramanathaswamy Temple. 

On Thursday, the sea was rough and there were high tides at the Rameswaram coast. But this did not deter the fisherfolk from venturing into the sea.  According to the Meteorological department, a trough of low pressure formed near Sri Lanka, has been causing heavy rains in the coastal regions in the south.