UDHAGAMANDALAM: Torrential rain battered the Nilgiris in the last few days, triggering 69 landslides, uprooting scores of trees, and causing severe damage to key road infrastructure across the hill district. The intense wet spell disrupted traffic connectivity on critical ghat routes, prompting the highways department to mount round-the-clock restoration operations.In the 24 hours ending at 7am on Monday, the Nilgiris district recorded a cumulative rainfall of 734.5mm. Kinnakorai recorded the highest precipitation at 110mm, followed by Kotagiri with 68mm, Burliar with 59mm, and Yedappalli with 54mm. In the preceding 24-hour cycle ending Sunday morning, the district had registered 453.9mm of rainfall, with Parsons Valley receiving 52mm amid 62 landslips and 28 tree falls.The district administration’s damage report listed 43 uprooted trees, 18 damaged revetments, and partial damage to 18 huts on the weekend. Three people — two men and a woman — sustained injuries in rain-related incidents. While the administration’s daily bulletin recorded no fatalities, a landslide on the Coonoor–Mettupalayam road (on the Coimbatore district side) claimed the life of a govt bus driver on Friday night.Highways teams from Coimbatore and the Nilgiris pressed eight earthmovers into service to clear mud, boulders, and fallen trees on the Coonoor-Mettupalayam Road. Workers placed sandbags along fragile slopes to mitigate soil erosion, while geology experts inspected high-risk locations to assess structural stability.Traffic restrictions were enforced at the Kallar check post along the Mettupalayam Road, permitting only emergency, rescue, and relief vehicles towards Coonoor and Udhagamandalam. Other vehicular traffic was diverted via the Mettupalayam–Kotagiri route, with night travel completely suspended between 6pm and 6am. Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) train services between Mettupalayam and Udhagamandalam have been cancelled for three days from Oct 27 to 29.The district officials reviewed preparedness, ordering constant surveillance of vulnerable slopes, adequate buffer stocks of sandbags and power transformers, and readiness for evacuations. Top officials inspected restored stretches at Thalaiyattimund and Kundah, while joint inspections were ordered in Balacola.
