Kalamassery battered by unprecedented floods

Unprecedented flooding in Kalamassery leaves residents shocked, with over 100 houses inundated, valuables damaged, and relief camps opened.

Muhammad Kunju, 61, a resident of Moolappadam in Ward 6 of Kalamassery municipality, says he has never seen such flooding in the area in his entire life, not even during the 2018 deluge.

In less than three hours, water rose to unprecedented heights, in some low-lying stretches up to four to five feet, inundating over 100 houses in the ward to different degrees, leaving residents shocked and their valuables damaged. In a way, it was unsurprising, as Kalamassery recorded 157 mm rainfall, copious enough to be qualified as a cloudburst.

“Hardly any house in the area was left unaffected with water rising to chest, hip and knee level in houses depending on their location. Water from other wards in the municipality also flowed in with little avenue for draining out. The municipal authorities should be held responsible for our nightmare,” said Mr. Kunju who shifted with his wife to the first floor of their house.

Several other residents in the area similarly moved upstairs while others left to stay with their relatives. Disruption of power and water supply made things worse. The municipal chairperson could not be contacted over phone.

A.T.C. Kunjumon stood knee-deep in water inside his house even as his car and motorcycle parked in the portico remained submerged. Furniture and invertor were also lost to floodwaters. “If my house is this flooded, I can only imagine what the condition would be of houses even further down. It seems that the drainage pipe proved too small for flushing out the amount of water accumulated in such a short time,” he said.

Fire and Rescue Services personnel from the Eloor station had to deploy a rubber dinghy to shift a bedridden elderly woman and to distribute food to the marooned residents. They also had to attend to removing a tree that snapped power connection to the strong room on the Cochin University of Science and Technology campus, where electronic voting machines after the Lok Sabha elections have been kept.

Nasheeda Salam, Moolappadam ward member, said even 90 mm rainfall was enough to inundate 20 to 30 houses in the area. “The drains have been choked with all sorts of waste in the flood and cleaning will have to wait till the water drains out. We moved an elderly couple to the Government Medical College, Kalamassery,” she said.