Keralam: 5 dead, 2 missing as heavy rain triggers landslides and flash floods

• At least five people were killed and two remained missing after intense rain triggered landslides, mudslides and a flash flood across Keralam.

• Chief minister V.D. Satheesan ordered hourly assessments and directed officials to undertake evacuations wherever necessary.

• Six districts were placed under an orange alert on Monday, with heavy to very heavy rainfall and thunderstorms forecast.

Six districts were placed under an orange alert on Monday morning as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned of heavy to very heavy rainfall and thunderstorms at isolated locations.

The alert, issued at 7 am and initially valid for three hours, covered Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam and Thrissur. Thunderstorms accompanied by rain and surface winds reaching 40 kmph were also considered highly likely in these districts.

Light rain was forecast at isolated places in Kollam, Palakkad and Kannur.

The latest warning followed a series of rain-related incidents on Sunday. In Malappuram district, five people from Vandoor were swept away by a flash flood in the Kottapuzha River in the Nilambur–Amarambalam area.

According to police, the group had entered the river for a bath when the water level rose suddenly. A local resident rescued one person, while Fire and Rescue personnel later recovered two bodies. The search continued for the remaining two people.

Satheesan directed the immediate deployment of a special Disaster Management Force team to the area to assist with rescue and search operations.

In Kottayam district, a 35-year-old woman from Tamil Nadu was killed when a landslide struck Velathussery near Teekoy. The victim, identified as Sangeetha Arul Lal of Jawahar Nagar in Chennai, was returning from Vagamon with a friend when mud fell onto the road and trapped her scooter.

Her friend escaped with injuries and was taken to hospital, police said.

Two more people were killed in Idukki district after a mudslide flattened a shed at Kottakamboor. Three people had taken shelter inside the structure during the rain at around 3.30 pm when debris cascaded down and trapped them. One woman was injured in the incident.

Following the Chief Minister’s directions, Disaster Management Commissioner Vigneshwari convened a meeting with the district collectors of Idukki and Kottayam to review conditions.

SMS weather alerts were issued in both districts. The collectors were instructed to continuously assess local conditions and take all necessary measures, including the evacuation of people from vulnerable areas.

The IMD had upgraded its warnings for Kottayam and Idukki from yellow to orange on Sunday. An orange alert signifies the possibility of heavy to very heavy rainfall, ranging from 115.6 mm to 204.4 mm within 24 hours.

The weather agency has forecast heavy rain in parts of Keralam over the next four days, along with thunderstorms at isolated locations through 21 September.

The spell comes after a relatively weak monsoon in the state. Keralam recorded a rainfall deficit of 28 per cent between 1 June and 17 September, according to IMD data.

With PTI inputs