82,000 rescued in battered Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram, August 18, 2018 00:00 IST
August 18, 2018 05:24 IST
Moving out of trouble:A 79-year-old woman being taken in a boat at Veeyapuram in Kuttanad on Friday.C. Suresh KumarThe Hindu
Bigger boats, more choppers to be deployed in flood-hit areas; more heavy rain forecast for 48 hours
Hundreds of volunteers and fishworkers joined hands with teams of the armed forces, National Disaster Response Force, and State government agencies in a massive operation to rescue over 82,000 citizens from flooded locations in four districts on Friday.
The rescue efforts which commenced at daybreak continued into the night. Helicopters and boats were pressed into service at various locations in Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, and Thrissur to locate flood victims, drop food supplies, and shift people to higher locations.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who discussed the flood situation with Mr.Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier in the day, said additional equipment, including big boats of the Army and more helicopters, would be used to rescue citizens marooned by floodwaters at Chalakudy and Chengannur, the worst affected areas.
He said the Centre had made arrangements to supply 1,00,000 food packets to the flood victims.
3,14,000 in camps
As many as 164 people have been killed in rain-related incidents across the State over the last nine days, taking the death toll in the monsoon season since May 29 to 324. More than 3,14,000 people have been shifted to 2,094 relief camps at various places. Rescue workers braved heavy rain and strong river currents to help men, women, and children to safety.
The breakdown of communication services and power supply hampered efforts to locate and zero in on people in the worst affected areas. Though the water level in the Periyar river started receding, the situation in Thrissur district worsened overnight, with the Chalakudy river, swollen by heavy rain in the upstream areas and the release of waters from dams, breaching its banks. Residents in most parts of Chalakudy town woke up to find themselves cut off from the rest of the State.
The Paliyekkara toll plaza was flooded and traffic along the Mannuthy- Edapally national highway came to a halt.
Pandalam isolated
More than 6,000 people were rescued from flooded houses in Pathanamthitta district, mostly from Aranmula and Kozhenchery. The rising floodwaters isolated Pandalam town and threatened to inundate Thiruvalla.
Food packets and life jackets were airdropped. Upper Kuttanad remained waterlogged. Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) P.H. Kurian said efforts were on to supply food and water in boats also. With the strong currents in the Pampa and Chalakudy rivers making it difficult to operate boats, rescue teams sought the help of helicopters to drop food supplies and airlift flood victims to safety.
The Chief Minister said 42 big boats would be flown in by the Army and deployed at Chalakudy, Kalady, Chengannur, and Thiruvalla by Saturday morning while the Air Force would press four more helicopters into service.
As many as 23 helicopters of the Air Force and the Navy and 150 boats were deployed. The Army deployed 27 teams, the Navy 58, the NDRF 33, and the Coast Guard 30. Mr.Vijayan said the Centre had agreed to send 14 additional teams of the NDRF to the State.
The governments of Punjab, Maharashtra, and Telangana reached out to Kerala with a pledge to supply packed food while Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal promised an assistance of Rs. 10 crore.