Kerala rain fury: 8 dead, several missing as landslides and floods batter state

Kerala remained on high alert on Sunday, August 2 after days of relentless rain left at least eight people dead, triggered landslides and flash floods, and caused extensive damage across several districts, particularly in the state’s high ranges. According to the latest official disaster assessment, the fatalities include three children; four of the deaths were caused by landslides. Search operations are continuing for six fishermen, four from Thiruvananthapuram and two from Kollam, who went missing in the Arabian Sea, as well as two Kannur residents who were swept away after falling into a river.Heavy rain continued to lash several parts of Kerala on Sunday, triggering fresh landslides that claimed four lives in Kottayam and Idukki districts, while the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an orange alert for 12 districts warning of continued intense rainfall.The orange alert has been issued for Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod on August 2. No weather alert has been issued for any district on August 3.On Sunday, two women were killed after a landslide struck a house at Payyanithottam near Erattupetta in Kottayam’s Meenachil taluk. The victims were identified as Josephine Johny (28) and Regina Johny, who were trapped under the debris.In Idukki, two more deaths were reported in separate landslides. Sumathi, 69, died in a landslide at Kudayathoor in Thodupuzha taluk, while 72-year-old Prabhakaran Nair, a native of Vaikom, was killed in another landslide at Vagamon in Peerumedu taluk.The State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) said 64 relief camps are functioning across Kerala as of Sunday morning, housing 1,349 people. The largest number of camps are in Kottayam (23) and Pathanamthitta (22), followed by Idukki (6), Malappuram (4), Kozhikode (3), Thiruvananthapuram (2), Alappuzha (2), and one each in Ernakulam and Kannur.The number of camps has come down slightly from Saturday evening, when the state had 65 relief camps accommodating 1,465 people, indicating that some families have been able to return home as conditions improved in certain areas.The SEOC said all taluk-level control rooms across the state are functioning round the clock to coordinate rescue and relief operations.The IMD has also advised fishermen not to venture into the seas off the Kerala, Karnataka, and Lakshadweep coasts on Sunday because of rough weather conditions.Despite the recent spell of heavy rain, Kerala continues to record a rainfall deficit this southwest monsoon. Between June 1 and August 2, the state received 928 mm of rainfall against the seasonal normal of 1,323.2 mm, a deficit of 30%.The cumulative disaster assessment released by the SEOC for the period ending August 1 recorded eight deaths, four missing persons and one injured person. It also reported that 17 houses had been completely destroyed and 127 were partially damaged. Agricultural losses were reported from Palakkad, where 21.09 hectares were affected, and Ernakulam, where 2.42 hectares of farmland suffered damage due to heavy rain and strong winds.Following the widespread damage caused by the rain over the past two days, Chief Minister VD Satheesan had convened an emergency review meeting on August 1 and directed ministers overseeing affected districts to remain on the ground to coordinate relief measures. The government had also said financial assistance would be provided to families of those killed and to people who lost homes, farmland or livelihoods.