New Delhi: Kerala continues to fight a resurgent monsoon on Thursday, with cities and villages submerged by floodwaters. The state, facing its worst floods in history since 1924, saw as many as 73 deaths due to rain-related incidents. Flight operations at the Kochi airport have been suspended till Saturday as officials said a red alert has been sounded in all the 14 districts of the state. The public transport system collapsed in many parts of central Kerala with the Southern Railways and Kochi Metro today suspending their operations due to floods.
Here are 10 updates on the Kerala floods:
* The floods have claimed 52 lives over the last two days, with 22 more deaths recorded up till 9:30am today
* Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan got in touch with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh for the second time in two days seeking urgent deployment of more personnel of the armed forces, helicopters and sufficient equipment to help the State in its rescue operations.
* IAF helicopters are being deployed for rescue operation after Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman spoke to Kerala CM, who requested for more boats, life jackets and other supplies.
* More than 1.5 lakh people have been evacuated to 1068 relief camps spread across the state. Meanwhile, the IMD has issued a red alert warning, cautioning of further heavy storms in the state.
* Drinking water is a major concern and also there is no power in many places. Phones are running out of charge, and so reaching out for help is also becoming difficult for many.
* Met department has issued warning of heavy storms in Trivandrum, Kollam, Alappuzha, Idukki, Kozhikode, Wayanad, and Malappuram.
* In wake of the situation in the State, Public Service Commission has put off all departmental tests, interviews and certificate verification scheduled for the next two days.
* Water level is reportedly rising alarmingly in the Chalalkudy river, with road traffic on the highway having been affected. All major rivers and their tributaries have flooded. Many parts of National Highways are reportedly submerged.
* Electricity is a major issue, and in many places there is no power supply. This, the cutting off of the power supply, has been done by KSEB, to avoid electrocution of affected people, as well as rescuers.
* Indian Navy today said it had deployed 21 rescue and diving teams with inflatable 'Gemini' boats as the flood situation further worsened across Kerala on Wednesday due to the heavy rains
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