Kerala death toll 27, more rain forecast : Red alert at dams, hundreds of families moved to shelters

Akash and Aishwarya negotiate a waterlogged area in a cooking vessel before their marriage in Alappuzha on Monday. :PTI

Special Correspondent   |   TT  |  Bangalore   |  19.10.21  :  Kerala is bracing for more heavy rains from Wednesday even as rescue workers retrieved more bodies of landslide victims in Kottayam and Idukki, taking the official death toll to 27.

Although many affected areas experienced some sunshine on Monday, the weather forecast for the next few days caused concern for people living in the high ranges that bore the brunt of the landslides triggered by cloudbursts.

With the rain forecast adding to the worries of swollen rivers and dams, the state government empowered an expert committee to take the final call on releasing excess water from fast-filling dams. The decision was taken at a meeting of the state disaster management authority called by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday.

Although the current situation is nowhere close to the 2018 floods that devastated the state and claimed around 480 lives, the government is cautious about releasing water as low-lying areas will get inundated.

As the impact of the rain misery unfolded, hundreds of families were moved to shelters in areas where a large number of houses were washed away in landslides and flash floods. The chief minister instructed the authorities to ensure adequate facilities at the 185 shelters operational as on Monday evening.

An expert committee decided to release water from Idukki dam hours after energy minister K. Krishnankutty told reporters that the authorities would be forced to do so if rain persisted. Idukki collector Sheeba George said two shutters would be lifted 50cm each at 11am on Tuesday.

The authorities sounded a red alert in Idukki dam starting 6pm on Monday as water levels continued to rise. The collector said the water level could touch the upper rule level mark of 2398.86 feet by 7am on Tuesday making the opening of shutter inevitable.

Ernakulam collector Jafar Malik said two shutters of the Idamalayar dam would also be opened by 80cm each at 6am on Tuesday. Although it is unlikely to flood the banks of the Periyar river in the district as the outflow would be regulated at 100 cubic metre per second, the officer urged caution.

By the end of Monday, the authorities issued red alert at 9 of the 17 dams operated by the Kerala State Electricity Board and two of the 20 dams operated by the state irrigation department considering the rising water storage levels.

Fisheries minister Saji Cherian told reporters that water levels would rise in Kuttanad region of Alappuzha district by Monday night. “There is no doubt water levels are going to rise in Kuttanad. So residents must move to shelters and carry all their valuables and documents,” said Cherian, whose constituency Chengannur was among the worst-hit in the 2018 floods.

Sections of the Chalakudy river in Thrissur district was in spate and threatened to inundate low-lying areas as outflow from Sholayar and Peringalkuthu dams increased on Monday afternoon. This was mainly due to the water being released from Parambikulam dam in neighbouring Tamil Nadu.

Chalakudy MLA Saneesh Kumar Joseph said there was already much concern about the inflow into the river. “There is a possibility that low-lying areas would get inundated once more water flows in later today. To avoid any danger, we have already moved people in those areas to shelters,” he said.

He said while the situation was not comparable to the 2018 floods when large swathes of both banks of the river were flooded, the authorities did not want to take any chances. “We are urging people to cooperate with the district authorities and emergency teams and move to safer areas,” he told reporters.