Floods:105 relief camps opened in Kerala, evacuation continues

Thiruvananthapuram : Kerala Government has opened 105 relief camps to rehabilitate people evacuated from flood affected areas in the State, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Sunday.

In the wake of the red alert declared due to rainfall and possible flooding and water logging in several districts, a total of 11 teams of National Disaster Response Management (NDRF) have been deployed for rescue operations, the Chief Minister said in a Facebook post.

One team each of NDRF was deployed in Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Malappuram districts. Steps are being taken to deploy additional five NDRF teams in Idukki, Kottayam, Kollam, Kannur and Palakkad districts, he said.

One team each of Indian Army was deployed in Thiruvananthapuram and Kottayam districts. One team each of Defence Security Corps was deployed in Kozhikode and Wayanad districts.

Two choppers of the Indian Airforce arrived at Thiruvananthapuram from Solur in Coimbatore and are already in standby mode to meet the requirements.

Air Force personnel were pressed into service at Mallapally in Pathanamthitta where several people have been stranded. Efforts are going on to airlift the people from these areas.

A Navy helicopter was deployed at the landslide affected, Koottickal and Kokkayar areas, to drop food packers in flooded areas.

With the cooperation of police, fire force and land revenue control rooms, a 24-hour state emergency response centre has been set up by including officials from KSEB, State Water Resources and Motor Vehicles Departments to deal with any kind of emergency situation.

Fishermen were asked to not venture into the sea for fishing in Kerala coast due to heavy rain forecast.

According to a flood warning issued by the Central Water Commission, water level is likely to rise in a few places in Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts, including Madamun, Kallooppara, Thumbamon, Pullakkayar, Manikkal, Vellayikkadavu and Aruvippuram in Thiruvananthapuram district.

According to rainfall warning issued by the IMD, Yellow Alerts were issued in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram and Kozhikode districts.

As thunderstorm with lightning is very likely to occur in Kerala, people are requested to take extra precautions avoid travelling and follow directions from district administration to avoid any untoward incident.

About 33 people were rescued from Vaipur, Ranni Taluk and Pathanamthita.

One Column of Army personnel from DSC Centre, Kannur with Engineering and Medical components arrived at Wayanad and commenced the rescue operations.

Another specialist Engineering Task Force (ETF) under Headquarters Dakshin Bharat Area has moved from Bengaluru and expected to arrive Wayanad and Mundakayam soon. Total 3 columns were deployed by the Army so far.

All the bases of the Navy and the Airforce have been put on high alert in view of the prevalent weather situation at Kerala.