Amid heatwave, strong summer showers hit western TN; destroy acres of banana crop

COIMBATORE: It was not the respite they were hoping and praying for. After remaining worried over the fate of their crops wilting in the scorching summer, the farmers in western Tamil Nadu received rain on Saturday, showers that were so heavy that crops on hundreds of acres were destroyed.

The most affected were the farmers in Erode and Salem, especially those who had planted bananas. The surprise summer showers accompanied by strong winds on Saturday night damaged the crop; the crop that they struggled and maintained by buying water from tanker operators. The bananas, they said, were about to be harvested in another two months.

#Erode's Sathyamangalam, Thalavadi, and adjoining hill areas witnessed strong winds and rainfall on Saturday.

V Kalyanasundaram#DTNext #weather #heatwave #rain #rainupdate #weatherstory #tnsummer #tnrains #monsoon #cropsdamage #agriculture #heat #damage #thunderstorms pic.twitter.com/utUJVWQZNK

— DT Next (@dt_next) May 5, 2024

In Erode, the district that has been experiencing excessive heat this summer with temperatures going up to 44 degrees Celsius this week and was the third hottest city in India on April 29, the wind and rains wreaked substantial damage to crops.

V Kalyanasundaram, who has a one-acre farm in Sathyamangalam, lost 600 banana trees. The bigger farms in his neighbourhood were hit hard, losing between 5,000 and 6,000 trees in the strong, 20-minute spell of rain.

Thousands of banana trees were destroyed following strong winds and #rainfall on Saturday evening in #Erode's #Sathyamangalam, #Thalavadi, and adjoining hill areas.

V Kalyanasundaram#DTNext pic.twitter.com/NQ5J0Pr9Mm

— DT Next (@dt_next) May 5, 2024

In April too, around 10,000 banana trees were damaged due to gale and heavy rain in Thalavadi and adjoining hill villages in Erode.

Meanwhile, heavy rains have been forecast in the region on May 7.