Rain @ Coimbatore
People take shelter from intermittent rain in Coimbatore on Friday.The chill breeze as a result of the heavy downpour in neighbouring Palakkad district in Kerala and the rain in Coimbatore over the last 48 hours has brought much relief to the residents of Coimbatore who were reeling under soaring mercury levels for the last three to four months.The mild showers and the chill breeze in the last two days marked the setting in of the South West monsoon and farewell to the summer.Coimbatore was reeling under uncertainty for the last two weeks with people being worried about the delay in the setting in of the South West monsoon. Fears ranged from a delayed or poor monsoon, to even a case of monsoon failure.The setting in of the monsoon in Kerala, though belated, brought a sigh of relief for residents who were afraid of facing water scarcity when the water level in Siruvani started depleting, forcing water managers to cut down the duration of supply.The inflow into Siruvani dam had started increasing steadily, building the confidence of the people in the City and allaying fears of impending water scarcity.
The rainfall level was 40 mm on Thursday and the Corporation sources said that there was more rain on Friday increasing the steady inflow into the reservoir.According to reports reaching the district headquarters, with the incessant rain continuing in the Western Ghats, there was a steady inflow into the catchments of the various PAP reservoirs.The district administration has already alerted the highways department, Tamil Nadu Electricity Board, public works department, revenue department, police and fire and rescue services department to be in a state of readiness to handle the situation arising out of heavy downpour during the South West monsoon.
With the South West monsoon bringing torrential downpour in the Nilgiris district, the Pilloor reservoir in the down slopes of Western Ghats reached close to the brim at 6.10 p.m.Considering the safety of the dam structure into account, the authorities have opened four sluices at the dam commencing the discharge in to the River Bhavani.Following this, the revenue authorities have sounded a flood alert along the banks of river Bhavani at Mettuppalayam and Sirumugai for the safety of the people living in low-lying areas.
It may be recalled that Pilloor caters to the drinking water requirements of Coimbatore City and a number of wayside habitations till Palladam. The city had been witnessing mild showers accompanied by a chill breeze for the last two days and people anticipate the monsoon to turn vigorous and turn the rain into a heavy downpour.The rainfall had been widespread across the district and authorities anticipate the rainfall level to intensify in the next 24 hours to 48 hours.
Following is the rainfall level (in mm) recorded at 8.30 a.m. on Friday at various places; Upper Nirar 170, Lower Nirar 107, Peruvaripallam 64, Upper Aliyar 5, Manacadavu 34.1, Valparai 81, Thoonakkadavu 68, Kadamparai 13.2, Pollachi 18, Sircarpathy 25.3, Sholayar 88, Parambikulam 103, Aliyar 12.6, Thirumurthy 2, Mettuppalayam 1, Coimbatore South 3, Agriculture University 8.4, Airport 2.3.The water levels (in ft) in the various Parambikulam Aliyar Project reservoirs were as follows (Full Reservoir Level in brackets); Sholayar 49.20 (160), Parambikulam 10.97 (72), Aliyar 75.80 (120), Thirumurthy 16.81 (60) and Amaravathy 38.34 (90 ft).
