IMD issues yellow alert for five Kerala districts; fishermen warned of rough seas

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced a yellow alert for five districts of Kerala on Sunday, 1 September and advised fishermen to avoid sea. The alert has been sounded for Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod districts.

A yellow alert indicates heavy rainfall ranging from 64.5 mm to 115.5 mm. The weather department has said that squally weather with wind speeds of 35 to 45 km/hour and gusts up to 55 km/hour, is expected along the Kerala coast.

Authorities have advised fishermen to avoid venturing into the sea due to the rough weather conditions, triggered by a depression over the central west and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal off the coasts of northern Andhra Pradesh and southern Odisha, according to the IMD.

It may be recalled that the southwest monsoon arrived in Kerala on 30 May, two days before its normal onset date of 1 June. However this year, there was heavy pre-monsoon rain that inundated Kerala for several days.

The southwest monsoon in Kerala follows well-defined criteria and the IMD has a dedicated weather model to forecast the beginning of the monsoon. The IMD has also predicted that there is a possibility of above-average rain in India in 2024.

It may be noted that during the current monsoon season, the state has witnessed heavy rain creating major damages. The landslide in Wayanad during the early hours of 30 July led to the death of hundreds of people and many continue to be missing.

The heavy rain triggered massive landslides leading to the disaster. Earlier, an orange alert was issued for Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasaragod districts in Kerala.

It may be recalled that disaster management mitigation documents prepared as early as 2020 have predicted that Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Puthumala, Attamala, Vellithodu, Thrikkaipatta and Kottatharavayal villages were highly sensitive to landslides.