Heavy Rains in Kerala Claims 26 Lives

Kerala Rains: Heavy rains are lashing Kerala since Saturday and around 26 people lost their lives due to the flash floods. The Indian Meteorological Department(IMD) has issued yellow alert in more than 11 districts of the state. 

The weather department officials claimed that cloudburst is one of the reasons for heavy and unseasonal rain. Though the low-pressure area formed in the Arabian sea weakened, the MET Department said that heavy rains will continue on Monday. 

As per the experts, Kottayam and Idukki are worst-hit districts as all the dead bodies claimed are found there. The officials have recovered 22 bodies- 13 from Kottayam district and nine from Idukki and it is expected that there are still many people who went missing and the rescue operations are ongoing. 

The officials deployed National Disaster Response Force (NDRF)  in each district Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Malappuram. In addition, five more teams have been directed to be deployed in Idukki, Kottayam, Kollam, Kannur and Palakkad districts.

The officials have banned fishing in Kerala, Karnataka and Lakshadweep off the coast till October 18 because of the warning from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan about the thunderstorms and strong winds on Monday.