Heavy rains in Kerala Highlights: Over 22,000 people have been shifted to relief camps in Kerala where rains have disrupted the normal life. In Wayanad, the NDRF teams have rescued 60 people following a massive landslide on Thursday, news agency ANI reported. Bodies of six people have been recovered so far. Meanwhile, the IMD has issued red alert for nine districts – Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasargod districts.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday night chaired a high-level meeting with government and state Disaster Management Authority officials to review the situation. The meeting was held after a major landslide hit the Meppadi area of Wayanad, the parliamentary constituency of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Kalpeta MLA CK Saseendran said the landslide site was inaccessible due to cave-ins along the road. A temple, a church, a few houses and some vehicles have been buried under the mud.
Chief Minister Vijayan urged people living on low-lying areas to move to relief camps and follow the government instructions. The state is receiving heavy to very rainfall for the last few days. The IMD has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall across the state for the next 24 hours. Meanwhile, four members of a family were killed at Edavanna in Malappuram district when their house collapsed on Friday, taking the rain-related death toll to 12.
Live Blog
Kerala Rains Highlights: Heavy Rains in Kerala, Kerala Weather Forecast
The Kerala government has decided to postpone iconic Nehru Trophy boat race in the state, keeping in view the flood situation in the state. The boat race has been postponed for the second consecutive year.
The Home Ministry said as many as 83 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been dispatched to four flood-hit states of Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka and Gujarat for rescue and relief operations.
Kochi airport has been shut till at least Sunday as rainwater inundated the area around the terminal and runway. Continuous rains in Kerala have triggered floods in several districts across the region. The IMD has issued red alert for nine districts.
The India Meteorological Dept (IMD) has issued Red Alert for nine districts of the state as heavy rains continue to lash the region. Red alert has been issued for Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasargod districts.
Relief and rescue teams have recovered six bodies so far from Meppadi in Wayanad district where a landslide occurred on Thursday. Rescue work has been hit due to inclement weather and tough terrains in the region.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters that over 22,000 people have been shifted to 315 relief camps set up by the government across the state. Most people in these camps are from Wayanad. Over 20 people have been killed in rain-related incidents in the state, he said. 'Intensity of rainfall is likely to subside tomorrow but another spell of extremely heavy rainfall expected from August 15,' Vijayan said.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has sought the Indian Army's help in relief and rescue operations. A dozen teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are already at the job.
All schools, colleges and other educational institutions were shut in all the 14 districts on Friday keeping in mind the devastating rain and flood that had hit the state in a century last year.
There has been 260 mm of rain in Wayanad -- the parliamentary constituency of former Congress president Rahul Gandhi. A huge landslide has marooned around 2,000 people in Meppadi in the district.
Incessant rain in Kerala have claimed 23 lives in the past two days. Till late on Thursday the toll was eight, but a fresh count took the numbers to 23 on Friday. The worst affected districts include Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur, Wayanad, Kasargode and Idukki and the deaths have also been reported from these areas.
Army personnel have been deployed in three districts of Kerala -- Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Ernakulam. In addition to this, two columns of Armymen have been kept standby at the military station.
Traffic movement, through Pattambi bridge, stops. The bridge is flooded as Bharathappuzha river is overflowing, news agency ANI reported.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the flood situation in Kerala and sought assistance for those affected in the State, including in his constituency Wayanad. He called Modi and asked for relief and assistance to those affected. "Spoke to the Prime Minister seeking all possible assistance for the people severely affected by the floods and landslides in the state, especially in Wayanad. The PM has assured to provide any assistance required to mitigate the effects of the disaster," he tweeted from his Wayanad MP twitter handle.
Sixty people have been rescued by NDRF from Puthumala near Meppadi in Wayanad so far. The region was hit by a massive landslide following heavy rains yesterday.
Over 22,000 people have been moved to relief camps in Kerala where rains have affected normal life. In Vatakara in Kozhikode district, three people are said to be missing after a landslide. Pala town in Kottayam is flooded and traffic movement has stopped. At Edavanna in Malappuram district four members of a family, including two children, died in a house collapse.
Houses submerge in floodwater in Aluva's Kuttamassery area in Kochi. Kerala is once again receiving heavy to very rainfall for the last few days.
54 people have been rescued by NDRF from Puthumala near Meppadi in Wayanad. Approximately 100 people have been rescued so far.
A PTI report said that high waves are likely in the range of 3.2-3.7 metres are forecast till 23:30 hours of Saturday along the coast of Kerala from Pozhiyoor to Kasargod. Officials have advised fishermen not to venture into these areas during the period.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted moderate to heavy rainfall with wind speed reaching 40-50 kmph is very likely to at one or two places in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam and Thrissur districts.
Train services on the Mararikulam-Alapuzha route was suspended this morning for a few hours as a tree fell on the track, damaging electric lines. At least 4 trains -- Maveli Express, Rajdhani, Dhanbad express and Guruvayur -- were held up at various points, railway sources told PTI.
At the Cochin International Airport, flight operations was suspended till midnight Friday after floodwaters inundated the apron area (parking). A PTI report on Friday morning said that the operations will remain closed till 3 PM on Sunday.
A PTI report said that four members of a family were killed at Edavanna in Malappuram district when their house collapsed on Friday, taking the rain-related death toll in the state to 12.
According to DM Vijayan, various areas in Malappuram has been flooded and cut-off following heavy rains. He has urged those living in flood-prone areas to follow government instructions and move to relief camps.
CM Vijayan said that officials are unable to assess the gravity of the destruction, adding that a part of the hill was gone in the landslide. He said that the government has requested the Army for a chopper for rescue operations.