Thiruvananthapuram: The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) has revised the red alert issued for the 'kallakadal' phenomenon in the State to an orange alert. Kallakadal is the sudden swell of the seas causing rough waves.
However, it is advised to maintain extreme vigilance as there remains a possibility of the kallakadal phenomenon in the coming days. A warning has been issued for a potential rough seas on the Kerala coast by 8 pm tonight. Beach trips and sea-related activities should be completely avoided, and fishing equipment should be securely stored.
The heatwave warning previously announced in the state has also been withdrawn by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Nonetheless, high temperatures are expected to persist until Monday, with temperatures forecasted to be 2 to 4 degrees Celsius above normal.
The unexpected 'kallakkadal' is driven by robust winds from the southern Indian Ocean. The UN's World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has accepted 'kallakkadal' as the global title for the phenomenon that involves the sudden and unannounced swell of waves that could wreak havoc along the coast.
As per the annual report of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the term 'kallakadal' was first proposed by ESSO-NCESS and was accepted by UNESCO in 2012 for describing such freak events of coastal flooding.
