As many as 19 people have been killed since Wednesday in Kerala in rain related incidents, as it continued to pour in several parts of the state.
After a brief lull in the monsoon, heavy rains have been wreaking havoc in the state for the past two days. According to the state disaster control room, 11 people have been killed in Idukki, five in Malappuram, two in Kannur and one in Wayanad. “The deaths were reported since Wednesday in rains related calamities. Also three people, one each from Wayanad, Palakkad and Kozhikode, went missing. Four people, one in Idukki and three in Wayanad have been injured. Relief camps are opening in many places,” officials of the control room told TNM.
Five members of a family at Adimali in Idukki were killed after their house was destroyed in the wee hours of Wednesday. The house of Hassan Koya near the National Highway collapsed following soil erosion. The deceased have been identified as Hassan Koya's wife Fatima, their son Mujeeb, his wife Shameena, children Diya Fatima and Diya Sana. At that time there were seven people at the house, of which five were killed.
Hasssan Koya and his relative Sainudheen survived with injuries. The incident happened around 2am on Wednesday.
In Malappuram five people were killed in landslides at Chettiyam Para near Nilambur. Two persons were killed in landslides at Kanjikkuzhi, Periyarvalley in the district. The deceased are Koodakunnel Augusty and his wife Elikutty. It happened in the early morning of Thursday. The bodies of deceased have been recovered.
At Vaithiri in Wayanad, a woman named Lilly has been killed after her house collapsed in soil erosion. At Vaithiri, a police station has been partially destroyed in landslide.
Landslides have also been reported from Kalikkavu, Nilambur and Karuvarakund. It is feared that many families have been isolated. One person, Rajeesh, went missing at Mattikkunn near Kannappankund in Kozhikode as heavy rain water flow generated new river paths. He went missing along with his car in the heavy flow of water.
Several houses at Mattikkunnu have been devastated in the region.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan held a high-level meeting on Thursday morning to assess the situation. Officials have decided to conduct a trial run of opening shutters at the Idukki dam following heavy rains in the catchment areas.