With the premises flooded, devotees leave Muthappan Temple in Kannur on a fishing boat. (express photo by S K Mohan)A fresh bout of heavy rain from Wednesday has led to flooding and landslides in Idukki and the northern districts of Kerala. A red alert has been sounded in four districts. Several houses at an estate settlement in Wayanad district were washed away in a major landslide on Thursday night.
According to the state disaster management authority, nine people died in separate incidents of flooding and landslides on Thursday. Around 13,000 people have been shifted to relief camps.
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As rivers overflowed in Kannur, Kozhikode and Malappuram districts, several towns were flooded, forcing hundreds of families to move to camps. Flight operations at the international airport in Kochi were suspended till 9 am on Friday due to waterlogging in the apron area.
The IMD has sounded a red alert in Kozhikode, Wayanad, Idukki and Malappuram and an orange alert has been issued in all other districts of the state, except Thiruvananthapuram.
The state government has sought the assistance of Army and the National Disaster Response Force. The Army has been asked to also supply food packets
Waterlogging at Aluva Manapuram temple in Ernakulam. (Photo Credit: Nitin RK)After reviewing the rescue operations, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said there was a major landslide in Wayanad. “At present, we don’t have any details regarding the magnitude of loss there. Armymen have already reached there and the Air Force would join the rescue operations when the weather improves. People living in areas prone to landslide and flooding should move to relief camps,” he said.
In Ernakulam district, the Aluva Shiva temple, lying on the banks of the Periyar and which goes under water every monsoon, was barely visible on Thursday. (Photo Credit: Nitin RK)The CM said water level in dams is being closely monitored.
Until last week, the state had recorded a deficiency of 33 per cent in the season’s rainfall, but the present spell of torrential rains has brought down the deficiency to 23 per cent.
