THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Aug 09 :
Over 100 houses have been vacated and 12 camps have been urgently opened as flood situation has worsened in Kerala. Officers of the Kerala Fire and Rescue Department could be seen rescuing people from low-lying residential areas using boats as water has entered their houses in Pathalam in Ernakulam.
Around 951 people have been rehabilitated in the Paravur Taluk district as the low-lying residential areas like Pathalam Eloor have been submerged in water.Heavy rain has created havoc in Kerala and created a trail of destruction across the southern state. Twenty people have been killed in rain-related incidents so far. Of the total deaths, 11 people were killed in a massive landslide in high range Idukki, six in northern Malappuram district, two others in Kannur and one in Wayanad district since last night. Two persons were pulled out alive from the debris by the locals and police, they said.
With water levels rising in various dams and reaching almost its maximum capacity, shutters of at least 22 reservoirs in the state have been opened to drain out excess water.
Five members of a family were killed in Idukki’s Adimali town.
For the first time in the last 26 years, a shutter of the Cheruthoni dam of the Idukki reservoir, considered the biggest arch dam in Asia, was opened by noon on Thursday with the water level touching 2,398.98 ft. The full reservoir level (FRL) of the dam is 2,403 ft. Four shutters of the Idamalayar dam in Kochi district were opened on Thursday morning.
Calling the flood situation in the state “very grim”, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan it was for the first time in the history of the state that 22 dams have been opened at a time following the water level reaching its maximum capacity. He said an assistance of Army, Navy and Coast Guard has been sought and six more columns of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) had been requested to be deployed in the flood-hit areas.
“The flood has caused large-scale damage across the state. Water levels in rivers are on the rise. Thus, there is a need to open the shutters of many dams,” the chief minister said.
The deployment of Navy helicopter has been sought for the rescue of those stranded in the remote areas of Wayanad district, he said.
The Left leader added the services of Army and NDRF had also been sought in the worst-hit Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Idukki districts.
A 24×7 monitoring cell has been set up at the Secretariat to coordinate the relief works with various district collectors. Educational institutions have declared a holiday in Idukki, Kollam and other districts of the state.
