Flood hits Thiruvananthapuram's low-lying areas

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The low-lying areas in Thiruvananthapuram  were marooned by the  128.8-mm rain that lashed the city with the Akkulam lake swelling dramatically in spite of water being drained off by breaching the Veli sand bar earlier this week.

Among the worst hit areas were  Thekkummoodu bund colony  where around 200 houses were flooded as canals swelled. Similarly, water entered around a hundred houses at Poonthi road area near Anayara and several vehicles plying on Anayara – Kumarapuram road were damaged.

Elsewhere at Kamaleswaram, water did not drain into Kariyilthodu that led to a swollen Parvathi Pothanar. Areas such as Thrimoorthi Gardens, Aryankuzhy and Ganga Nagar  went under water for the third consecutive day partially due to blocks caused by NH bypass culvert work that hinders Kariyilthodu.

The rain also flooded Thampanoor and Attakulangara-Killipalam bypass.
Thekkumoodu bund colony which is inhabited mostly by labourers was also flooded.   Kunnukuzhy councillor I.P. Binu said that around 300 food packets were distributed to the flood affected in the morning and water started receding by afternoon.

Anamukham councillor M.A. Karishma said that most of the houses were inundated. Kadakampally councillor K. Sobha Rani said that the many of the small drains that run  parallel through NH bypass into Akkulam from her ward were covered up by rubbles during highway expansion.

“The earth movers of NHAI cleared the obstruction and water receded from houses in Kadakampally area,” Ms Rani said. The irrigation officials said that water from Akkulam was drained out after cutting the sandbar.