The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced on Friday that Kerala is expected to experience heavy to very heavy rainfall over the coming days due to prevailing weather conditions and wind patterns across peninsular India.
The IMD attributed the anticipated moderate to heavy rains to a low-pressure trough extending from the northern Kerala coast to the southern Gujarat coast, a well-marked low-pressure area over northwest Bay of Bengal, and strong westerly/northwesterly winds along the Kerala coast.
As a result, the IMD has issued an orange alert for the northern Kerala districts of Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, and Kasaragod, indicating very heavy rain (6 to 20 cm) for the day, and a yellow alert for five other districts, indicating heavy rainfall (6 to 11 cm).
The heavy rains, particularly in the northern Malabar region, have caused flooding, uprooted trees, minor landslides, and traffic disruptions. In Wayanad, the flooding of Muthanga National Highway (NH 766) left 25 vehicles with around 400 passengers stranded for several hours from midnight. A rescue operation by the fire department, supported by police, forest officials, and local residents, successfully relocated the people to safety after more than three hours.
Over 2,300 individuals have been relocated to 42 camps in the hill district as of Friday morning. The continuous rains have led to dangerously high water levels in rivers, partially damaged around 29 homes, and destroyed crops across 125 hectares of land.