Flood alert issued as Poondi nears FRL

Water inflow to Poondi reservoir increased due to heavy rainfall in the catchment area in Tiruvallur district, increase in the supply from Krishna river and release of surplus water from Ammapalli reservoir in Andhra Pradesh. The increased water flow resulted in the rapid water level rise in Poondi, following which the government released 1,000 cusecs of water from the reservoir at 2 pm, a release stated.

As the released water is set to reach the sea through the Kosasthalai river, there are chances of flooding. Residents of areas near the river—Manali, Ennore and 20 more villages—were asked to stay safe. Residents of low-lying areas also were also asked to take flood safety measures.

Poondi reservoir has a total height of 35 feet with a storage capacity of 3,231 million cubic feet. Due to heavy rain in the catchment areas, the reservoir received a good inflow of 1,691 cubic feet on Sunday morning, resulting in storage levels reaching an alarming 2,807 mcft at a height of 33.95 feet. As it was expected to touch the full reservoir level (FRL) of 34 feet by Sunday afternoon, the State government decided to release 1,000 cubic feet of excess water into the Kosathalai River. As more water flow is expected into the reservoir, officials have decided to release excess water in a phased manner.