Heavy showers lash three coastal districts in Tamil Nadu

Tirunelveli: More than 7,000 country crafts and 1,200 mechanised boats from the southern coastal districts of Kanyakumari, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli abstained from fishing in view of the rough weather. Around 250 fishermen who ventured for deep sea fishing from Kanyakumar district are yet to return to the shore.

The three southern coastal districts experienced heavy thunder showers since Tuesday midnight. During the last 24 hours that ended by 8 am on Wednesday, Thoothukudi district registered a total rainfall of 1060.80 mm with Thoothukudi city registering the maximum of 200.8 mm, which is unprecedented since 1970.

The average rainfall received by Thoothukudi was calculated to be 55.83 mm. Kanyakumari district registered an average rainfall of around 66 mm on Wednesday followed by Tirunelveli district with 27.87 mm.

Water level at the major dams increased hugely in a day's rain in Tirunelveli district. Water level at Servalaru dam that was at 19 ft went up to 49 ft as on Wednesday morning, while that at Papanasam dam increased by 5 ft in a single day.

No major damage is reported to have been caused by the rain. Around 250 fishermen who ventured for deep sea fishing from Kanyakumari district in 20 boats in the first week of March before the warning of low depression was given, are yet to return.

Of the 600 mechanised boats that went for deep sea fishing from the district, 550 were found to have safely returned to the shores near the area where they were fishing till Tuesday morning, said a fisheries department official, who also gave information about the safe return of 30 more boats that landed in the harbours of Cochin (21), Alikal in Kerala (2) and Thengaipattinam (7) in Kanyaklumari district till Wednesday evening. Search operation is on to find 20 boats reportedly missing, added the fisheries department source.

Inundation of train tracks in Thoothukudi crippled railway traffic. The Pearl City Express to Thoothukudi was stopped outside the city as Melur station in Thoothukudi is fully inundated. Similarly, the Thoothukudi-Tuirunelveli-Tiruchendur passenger rain too was delayed by 3 hours.

The derailment of an engine at Kottar railway station at Nagercoil in Kanyakumari district delayed the Nagercoil-Coimbatore passenger train. Due to derailment, services between Nagercoil-Thiruvananthapuram, Nagercoil-Tirunelveli and
Guruvayoor-Chennai too were delayed. Trains to Kanyakumari district from Bengaluru, Coimbatore and Chennai too reached Nagercoil late by 3 hours due to the derailment of the railway engine.