Thiruvananthapuram: Incidents related to heavy rains, including landslides and flash floods, have claimed 27 lives in Kerala so far. The State's Information and Public Relations Department confirmed 14 bodies have been recovered from the landslide-hit Koottickal in Kottayam district and nine from Kokkayar in Idukki. The state also reported four drowning deaths.
The body of Sachu Faisal (7), the last of the missing persons at Kokkayar, was recovered on Monday morning. The rescue operators have ended search operations in the area. However, rescue operations are still on to trace Ancy who went missing after flash floods swept her away from near the landslide site, an official said.
With water levels rising in the catchment areas, a red alert was issued in respect of 10 dams in Kerala, most of which are located in Pathanamthitta, Idukki and Thrissur districts. Shutters of Kakki, Sholayar, Anathodu and Parambikulam have already been opened and the shutters of Idamalyar dam and Idukki would be opened on Tuesday, officials said.
Earlier, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan informed that an expert committee has been constituted to monitor the water level and decide on the opening of shutters of various dams in the state. "The expert committee would analyse the water level, rains in catchment areas, and decide on opening dam shutters. In order to avoid any untoward incidents, the committee would convey its decision regarding dam opening to the respective district collectors hours in advance so that they can safely evacuate people from low-lying areas and from riverside residences," the CM said.
The state government has opened 184 relief camps across the state to shelter those affected by the rains. The CM has directed local authorities to ensure that these camps have adequate facilities including food, clothing and bedding. He also sought the assistance of local organizations.
Rain intensity reduced in most districts of the state on Monday. However, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has indicated an increase in rain intensity over the state from Wednesday. The weather department has issued a yellow alert for 11 districts of the state for heavy rainfall.
11 NDRF teams deployed in the state for rescue ops
As many as 11 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been deployed for rescue and relief operations in flood-affected Kerala.
A senior NDRF official said that 11 teams of the specialised force have been deployed in Kerala in consultation with the state authority. Two teams each have been deployed in Alappuzha and Idukki districts. One team each has been deployed in severely affected districts of Malappuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Pathanamthitta, Palakkad, Kannur and Kollam.
"So far NDRF teams have rescued 49 persons from flood-affected areas of Pathanamthitta and Ernakulam districts," the official said.
The official said that the teams recovered the bodies of six people from under the debris of landslides in Idukki district. " Our teams are still continuing the rescue operations," he added.
