A huge boulder from a hillock fell on Mosque Street in Vaniyambadi town in Tirupattur on Tuesday due to heavy rain the previous night. No one was injured in the incident.

Around 6 a.m., the residents heard a loud noise. They saw a huge boulder on the narrow stretch. Houses were not located on the path through which the boulder rolled down the hillock. “We were shocked to see such a big rock on our street. Many houses are located near the foothills. Safety measures should be taken to prevent such incidents,” said B. Subha, a resident.

Based on an alert, Vaniyambadi Town police and civic officials inspected the spot. Workers were deployed by the municipality to cut and remove the boulder.

“This is the first such incident in the area, which is not a landslide-prone spot. We have advised residents to relocate to safer areas as the region is witnessing regular rain,” K. Raghuraman, Commissioner of Vaniyambadi Municipality, told The Hindu.

Municipal officials said that around 1,500 families are located at the foothills. Many of them have built houses on the hill illegally. Initial inquiry by police and civic officials revealed that a resident had dug a pit to construct an additional room of his house in the hills on Monday.

Civic officials say construction activities could have loosened the soil around the boulder and led to its fall from the hillock. “We have requested revenue officials and Collector to demolish encroachments in the hills and relocate affected families to prevent any untoward incidents in future,” said a municipal official.