Rain fury in Kerala: Kochi airport shut till Saturday, 12 districts on red alert

Press Trust of India  |  Thiruvananthapuram/Kochi 

Rain fury today continued unabated in Kerala, where 47 people have died so far, with the international airport announced shut till Saturday after water gushed inside the airport area and remained suspended in many parts of the state.

A red alert has been sounded in 12 of the 14 districts.

Operations at the airport have been suspended till August 18 and flights were being diverted to various airports.

Airlines including IndiGo, and have announced suspension of their operations to

"All flights to/fro Kochi, stand cancelled till Aug 16, 2018 due to runway unavailability owing to flood situation. For cancellations/rescheduling, please visit bit.ly/2ndGnZ8 We hope everything gets normal soon," said in a tweet.

tweeted, "In view of suspension of operations at @KochiAirport, penalties on no-show, date/flight change or cancellations on all confirmed tickets to and from are waived off. Pax may contact #airindia call centre or #airindia website."

A landslide between Kuzhithurai and Eraniel stations has delayed four trains - Guruvayur-Chennai Egmore express, Kanyakumari-Mumbai CSMT express, Dibugarh-Kanyakumari Vivek Express and Gandhidham-Tirunelveli Humsafar Express, railway sources said.

A few passenger trains have been partially hit and rail traffic on Kollam-Punalur-Sengottai section has been suspended due to adverse weather conditions.

On Thiruvananhtapuram-Thrissur section, trains will be delayed due to speed restrictions due to rise in water levels in rivers and lakes.

The engineering department is continuously monitoring the safety of bridges, railways said.

According to weathermen, heavy rainfall accompanied by gusty winds with speed reaching 60 kmph, is expected in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Kozhikode districts.

From Kasaragod in the north to in the south, all rivers are in spate, shutters of several dams, including Mullaperiyar, have been opened.

In the high-range district, an 85-year-old woman was killed in Elakkal and a 52-year-old woman died in Keerithode when mounds of earth fell on their homes.

A man from was killed last evening when earth fell on a hotel he was working in Munnar while six other employees were rescued.

In a similar incident, a couple and their six-year-old son were killed when earth fell on their house at Kondotty in district early today.

A was electrocuted in Thrissur after he came in contact with a live electric wire.

stations including Athirappally, Ponmudi and Munnar closed and restrictions put in place for tourists.

Periyar, Chalakkidy Puzha and Pampa rivers were overflowing in central Kerala, while the water level in Killiyar, Karamanayar, and in district are steadily rising.

Incessant rains and strong winds have battered the high ranges of Thiruvananthapuram, including Nedumangadu, Bonacaud and Neyyattinkara area, since last evening.

The low-lying areas of the capital city including Gowreesapattom and Kannanmoola are under water, hitting hard normal life.

At least 18 families have been stranded in Gowreesapattom here as the area remained inundated.

A joint team of police and fire service personnel is trying to rescue them, many of whom have sought refuge on the roof of two-storey buildings.

The water overflowing from has caused the unprecedented water logging in places like Gowreesapattom.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Wed, August 15 2018. 13:35 IST