Heavy rainfall is likely to continue in the State on Monday, and, in some northern districts on Tuesday as well, under the influence of a second low-pressure area that has formed over the Bay of Bengal.
A gradual reduction in peak rainfall activity across the State is expected from Tuesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) indicated. The low-pressure area formed on Sunday morning over the west-central and adjoining north Bay of Bengal off the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coastline.
Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Malappuram, and Kannur are likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall on Monday. The IMD has put all four districts on orange alert. As per a 4 p.m. weather update on Sunday, rainfall activity over Idukki and Wayanad — two districts that have been receiving very high to extremely high rainfall — is expected to ease by Monday.
Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, and Kasaragod can expect isolated heavy rainfall on Monday. Yellow alerts have been issued for these districts.
KSEB dams
Inflow into the big dams across the State are witnessing a steady increase courtesy heavy rainfall. Nonetheless, the combined storage in dams managed by the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) still has not crossed the 60% mark, as on Saturday.
The current storage in the Idukki dam, the biggest managed by the power utility, stands at 57%, Edamalayar at 50%, Kakki at 53%, Banasurasagar at 66%, and Sholayar, at 67%. These five reservoirs account for 88% of the combined capacity of the dams managed by the KSEB.
The State government has already requested Tamil Nadu to keep the storage in the Mullaperiyar dam — controlled and operated by that State — at a manageable level, given the increase in inflow to the reservoir.
The KSEB has also opened control rooms at its headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram and at the Dam Safety Organisation at Pallam, Kottayam, for ensuring round-the-clock monitoring of water level.
