Coming, sirens to warn against gushing waters

NAMAKKAL: In the wake of seven people being washed away by gushing waters discharged from the Bavani Kattalai Barrage (BKB)-II, a warning system will be put in place soon to avert such incidents. A senior official of the hydro projects wing of the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) told Express, “As part of the warning system, a siren will be installed on top of the power house soon. The siren will go off before discharging water from the barrage so as to warn the people in the area to get back to the bank if they are out in the middle of the river.”The siren could blare covering an area of at least one km surrounding the power house.Moreover, boards carrying the message of warning will also be erected on the banks of the river, he said.However, the official noted that whatever be the warning systems, the public themselves should avoid venturing to the middle of the river as there is a possibility of sudden gushing of water.Water to a height of about 9 metre is stored for power production at the BKB-II.