Rain-related accidents claimed at least six lives in Kerala on July 16. Reports of power outages caused by tree branches falling on supply lines, inundated roads, rising river water levels, minor mudslips, and a few house collapses were trickling in from across the State.
Sulochana, 54, and her son, Ranjith, were killed when their tumbledown single-room house collapsed on them while sleeping at Kannambra in Palakkad district. The Fire and Rescue Services department removed their bodies to the district hospital for post-mortem examination. Sulochana was bedridden, and Ranjith worked as a private bus conductor.
The accident went unnoticed until July 16 morning as it rained heavily during night. The duo reportedly lay under the rubble for hours until the neighbours noticed the flattened house in the morning.
Two days of relentless rainfall has plunged Kannur district into chaos, leaving a trail of destruction. On July 16 morning, the body of 63-year-old K. Chandrasekaran from Chokli was discovered in a waterlogged area near an agricultural field. Local reports suggest he may have slipped and fallen into the water.
Kunhamina, 51, drowned after she fell into an open well in Kannur. In Mattannur, neighbours rescued a woman trapped inside her partially collapsed house.
The heavy rains accompanied by stormy winds that have battered central Travancore since Sunday have caused widespread troubles and claimed one life. Reji, a 48-year-old resident of Mepral, was electrocuted by a broken power line while cutting grass on an isolated property. The incident occurred around 10 a.m. on July 16. Official sources reported that Reji was electrocuted by a service line to a nearby church, which had been broken during the showers the previous night.
Preliminary reports indicate that Kottayam has seen as many as 25 tree falls, resulting in partial damage to 16 houses and the complete destruction of one house.
In another incident, Sudhan, 32, of Ezhuathimoonnu hamlet at Cheeyambam in Wayanad was electrocuted after he stepped on a live electric wire.
In Mananthavady in Wayanad, heavy rains and slippery roads caused a KSRTC bus to veer off the carriageway. The passengers and the bus crew escaped unhurt.
In Idukki, A mudslip partially choked the Munnar-Mattupetty road, slowing traffic on the arterial inter-State route.
Dam shutters raised
Authorities have raised the shutters of the Peringalkuthu and Malankara dams and cautioned people living downstream to exercise utmost vigilance.
In Thiruvananthapuram, district authorities have raised the shutters of the Peppara and Aruvikkara dams following heavy inflow from the catchment areas into the drinking water reservoirs.
Floodwaters have swamped the iconic Shiva Temple at Aluva in Ernakulam.
IMD warning
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that a weather system over the Indian Ocean would cause heavy rains in Kerala for the next 48 hours.
It has declared an orange alert for Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, and Kasargode districts on July 16 (Tuesday). The IMD has also placed Idukki, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur, and Palakkad districts under the yellow alert category.
Revenue Minister K. Rajan said the government had opened control rooms and relief camps in worst-hit taluks.
Holiday for educational institutions
A holiday has been declared for all educational institutions, including professional colleges in eight districts – Alappuzha, Kannur, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kottayam, Kozhikode, Wayanad, and Idukki, on Wednesday in view of the heavy rain forecast for these districts. However, there will not be any change in the exams scheduled earlier.
(with inputs from Palakkad, Kannur and Kottayam bureaus)
Published - July 16, 2024 12:25 pm IST
