Kerala heavy rainfall news: Orange alert issued in 9 districts, water level in Idukki, other dams - check here

Kerala heavy rainfall news, alert: Torrential downpour has thrown life out of gear in Karnataka. Now the neighbouring Kerala is likely to experience heavy rainfall with the IMD predicting widespread rainfall with isolated heavy falls and thunderstorm/lightning across the state for the next 5 days. The weather department has issued an orange alert in 9 districts. 

The water level in several dams, including the Mullaperiyar and Idukki, in the state are reaching their respective storage capacities and some even reached red alert status on Sunday, according to a PTI report.

Water level of six dams -- of which four are in Idukki -- under the control of KSEB are at red alert levels and in one at orange alert level, as per the data provided by the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA)

Dams where water has reached red alert levels were -- Ponmudi, Kallarkutty, Erattayar and Lower Periyar in Idukki, Kuttiyadi in Kozhikode and Moozhiyar in Pathanamthitta districts of the state.

Water levels in the Mullaperiyar dam, meanwhile, were holding steady at 135.7 feet as of 12 PM due to reduction in rainfall in the area for the last few hours and no alerts have been issued, an official from the control room set up in Idukki district said.

There was a slight increase in water level at Idukki dam, but nothing to be concerned about due to reduction in rainfall there at the moment.

On Saturday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, referring to weather data, had said heavy rains would continue for the next five days and cautioned people living in hilly regions to remain vigilant.

Authorities had sounded alerts to people residing on banks of various rivers where water levels were rising due to heavy rainfall in the state.

The continuous downpour in Kerala is wreaking havoc in various regions of the state with reports of massive flooding in some areas and people are forced to shift to other places for rescue. Several houses have been partially damaged due to heavy rains and gusty winds.

(With PTI inputs)