Thousands displaced due to floods in western districts

A Velankanni, 42, drowned to death after water entered her house in Manampalli tribal settlement in Valparai. In another incident, Vigneshwaran, an assistant engineer at TNEB died after a tree fell on him while he was involved in clearing mud on the road side.  

Torrential rain also triggered many landslips and boulders rolled down the arterial stretches resulting in traffic disruptions in the hills. A major landslip occurred on the Pollachi-Valparai ghat road early on Thursday and was cleared by authorities after three hours. Public transport came to a grinding halt in Valparai as the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) depot got flooded. 

Coimbatore district collector TN Hariharan has requested tourists not to visit Anaimalai, Valparai and Aliyar for three days. Water from overflowing Kurichi canal in Coimbatore entered into 150 houses in Qaide-Millet Colony and surrounding areas. 

Police said Subathra, 65 and her granddaughter Sivasankari, 6, suffered injuries after a damp wall of their house collapsed upon them due to rain. They were admitted at Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital (CMCH). The Erode district bore the maximum brunt as more than 500 families in flooded Sathyamangalam and Bhavanisagar areas were evacuated and sheltered in temporary camps. 

Floods also led to destruction of plantain and turmeric crops raised in over 500 acres at Ariyappampalayam in Erode district. Around 250 houses were flooded in Ariyappampalayam and Thottampalayam, while over 200 houses were affected in a few localities near Sathyamangalam. 

A private van, heading to pick up school students, was trapped in flash floods near Alathukombai near Sathyamangalam in Erode district. As the van began to sink, the public rescued the van crew and helped in bringing out the vehicle out of the water. 

As the combined discharge from Karnataka reservoirs has crossed 2.10 lakh cusecs, Salem District Collector Rohini Bhajibhakare said that a Disaster Management team are prepared to meet any eventuality. Over 16 temporary relief camps, 10 in Mettur, three in Edappadi and three in Sangagiri have been kept ready.  In Namakkal district, Kumarapalayam and Pallipalayam were flooded and hundreds of families have been shifted to relief camps.

The old Kollidam bridge has developed a crack in one of its piers due to heavy inflow of water from Mukkombu (Upper Anicut) to Kollidam river and seems to be gradually sinking. Officials fear that it might collapse and damage the new bridge adjacent to it. A group is camping near the area and monitoring the situation. After inauguration of the new bridge, the old bridge is hardly used by commuters.