Rescuers evacuate people from a flooded area to a safer place in Aluva in the southern state of Kerala, India, August 18, 2018. (REUTERS photo)
More than 200,000 families have taken refuge at relief camps set up across the state, an official at the Kerala State Disaster Management office said. Anil Vasudevan, who handles disaster management at the Kerala health department, told Reuters that authorities had isolated three people with chickenpox in one of the relief camps in Aluva town, nearly 250 km from state capital Thiruvananthapuram.
READ | Kerala floods LIVE: Rainfall eases in Kerala, relief operations underway
He said the department was preparing to deal with a possible outbreak of water-borne and air-borne diseases in the camps, where an estimated two million people have taken shelter since the monsoon rains began three months ago.
Meanwhile, for the first time since August 9, no red alert has been issued by the Indian Meteorological Department for any of Kerala’s 14 districts. However, the weather forecast for Ernakulam, Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha districts predicted heavy rains at isolated places. Kerala continues to remain on edge as the death toll since August 8 has climbed to 194. In a boost for rescue and relief operations in the flood-ravaged state, flight operations are set to resume from Kochi Naval Base from tomorrow.
A step-by-step guide on how you can donate to the Kerala CM’s relief fund
Kerala rains LIVE UPDATES: Rescue workers search for the bodies of missing persons after a landslide, triggered by heavy rains and floods, at Nenmara in Palakkad on Friday, Aug 17, 2018. (PTI Photo)
Security checks are underway at Garuda Naval base in Kochi where a commercial flight is coming in after 18 years.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday said that West Bengal government will contribute Rs 10 crore to the Kerala Chief Minister’s relief fund in view of the devastating flood in the state. “My heart goes out to the people of Kerala battling #KeralaFloods In this hour of crisis, to stand beside the flood-affected people of Kerala, we have decided to make a contribution of Rs Ten Crore to the Chief Ministers Distress Relief Fund,” Mamata tweeted. READ MORE HERE
Maharashtra government has set up a 24×7 Kerala Relief Desk at government headquarters, Mantralay, in Mumbai. The decision was taken by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to expedite the process of providing relief and rehabilitation to flood-ravaged Kerala. A decision has been taken to send a team of 50 doctors, led by Medical Education Minister Girish Mahajan, to Kerala. The team will leave on Monday. The medical team is part of the emergency drive to provide immediate treatment in wake of the fear of epidemic outbreak due to floods. READ MORE
Special cargo flight carrying another 30 ton of relief material including food from Mumbai was dispatched to flood-hit Kerela on Sunday evening. Yesterday 6.5 tonnes of relief material was dispatched. A medical team comprising of 70 doctors will reach Kerela on Monday.
Manipur Chief Minister tweeted: "People of Manipur stand in solidarity with the people of Kerala, may you find comfort in knowing that the rest of India stand with you. The people of Manipur pray for you and extending a sum of Rs 2 crore to relief funds from the state."
Assam CM Sarbanand Sonwal also expressed his grief at the loss of lives & large scale damage to property due to floods in Kerala and announced Rs 3 crore financial assistance to the Govt of Kerala for rescue & relief operations.
An imposter allegedly adorned the Indian Army uniform and has been spreading misinformation regarding the IAF efforts across Kerala.
TVS &Sons CEO Mr.Raghavan handed over Rs 1 crore to CM Pinarayi Vijayan today at Trivandrum along with two containers that are coming from Madurai with food and basic amenities.
Indian-origin billionaire businessmen based in the UAE have announced Rs 125 million donation for flood relief operations in the deluge-hit Kerala, according to a media report stated PTI. Nearly 200 people have lost their lives in Kerala since August 8 due to floods caused by rains and landslides, while over 3.14 lakh people have been moved to relief camps.
The Manipur government on Sunday donated Rs 2 crore as flood relief for the victims of Kerala hit by days of incessant rainfall and massive floods. "People of Manipur stand in solidarity with the people of Kerala, may you find comfort in knowing that the rest of India stand with you. The people of Manipur pray for you and extending a sum of Rs 2 crore to relief funds from the state, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj took to Twitter to announce that all passports damaged in the Kerala floods will be renewed free of cost by the central government.
As per ANI, Seva Bharati, RSS' community service unit is carrying out rescue&relief ops across state. A unit member says 'We stock materials&transport it via trucks&trains.We started this on 15 Aug&will continue as long as it's required'. CPI (M) cadres also continue working in camps to provide relief.
Heavy vehicles carrying vegetables and other essential materials from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh are struck for the past two days in Palakkad- Thrissur National Highway after Kuthiran stretch became unmotorable following heavy landslide.
Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik announced monetary help of additional Rs 5 crore to the earlier sanctioned Rs 5 crore for Kerala as well as polythene sheets worth Rs 8 crore to be sent to the state
The Islamic Centre of India has appealed to Muslims to at least donate 10 per cent of their Eid-ul-Adha budget for flood-ravaged Kerala. "Bakr-Eid is a festival which symbolises sacrifice in the real sense. This time, it is the flood-affected people of Kerala who need our support," he said.
According to a report released by the Indian Armed Forces showcasing the consolidated flood relief rescue efforts, nearly 23, 213 people were rescued and 2000 people were provided medical aid. 104 Navy boats, 110 Army boats and more than 200 rescue teams were deployed for operations in Kerala.
In Karnataka, 159 persons were rescued with the help of Army and Navy while air operations were not conducted due to bad weather.
Pope Francis prayed for Kerala flood victims at the Angelus on Sunday. “In recent days,” he noted, “the inhabitants of Kerala have been harshly struck by intense rains, which have caused flooding and landslides, with heavy loss of human life, with many people missing and displaced, with extensive damage to crops and homes.”
Wishing speedy recovery to the state, Tamim Bin Hamad's government in Qatar extended help to the flood victims in Kerala.
Anil Vasudevan, who handles disaster management at the Kerala health department, said the department was preparing to deal with a possible outbreak of water-borne and air-borne diseases in the camps, where an estimated two million people have taken shelter since the monsoon rains began three months ago.
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Telangana Home Minister donated Rs 25 crore and handed over the cheque to Pinarayi Vijayan and also said that 50 RO machines would be airlifted to Kerala soon.
Pinarayi Vijayan's office tweeted urging requestees to not provide erroneous information about people stranded assuring that every person will be rescued.
Indian railways issued a set of guidelines allowing all government organisations as well as private bodies to transport relief material to flood-ravaged Kerala for free. However, non-government organisations have to be vetted by divisional railway managers in order to avail this provision, said the guidelines issued Saturday.
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Samuel's decision to offer 25 cents of his land in Adoor in Pathanamthitta district for people to bury their dead is winning hearts. "Anyone irrespective of religion, caste, creed, class or sex can be buried on my land," he said. Read more
People from Kerala have been receiving automated phone calls, enquiring about their safety status and asking them about any requirement for rescue operations in the area.
"I'm horrified to see the loss of life and broader destruction caused by the continuing floods in Kerala. With more than a quarter of a million people displaced and hundreds dead, the human cost of this continuing tragedy is nearly unimaginable, and it is felt far beyond Kerala by countless families across the whole of India, here in the Chicago area, and throughout the world," Raja Krishnamoorthi, the Democratic lawmaker from Illinois was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
READ | Horrified to see loss of life, destruction by Kerala floods: Raja Krishnamoorthi
The water level in the Idukki reservoir was 2402.28 ft at 10 am Sunday; water flow into Periyar river measured at 913 cusecs per hour. Two shutters have been closed to limit the inflow, news agency ANI reported.
Kerala has been receiving financial aid from various state governments across the country. Andhra Pradesh has promised aid of Rs 5 crore, Delhi government Rs 10 crore, Karnataka Rs 10 crore, Odisha Rs 5 crore, Punjab Rs 10 crore, Tamil Nadu Rs 10 crore, Telangana Rs 25 crore, Haryana Rs 10 crore and many other state governments have followed suit.
Read | This is how much state has received as donation so far
Attorney General K K Venugopal has donated Rs one crore towards relief work in flood-hit Kerala. Venugopal's son, senior advocate Krishnan Venugopal also contributed Rs 15 lakh towards the relief fund. A group of Delhi-based Malayali lawyers have started a collection drive in front of the Supreme Court to dispatch necessary supplies to the flood-hit state. Those organising the collection drive told PTI that the supplies which include clothes for victims, sanitary napkins, mugs, buckets, biscuits, water bottles, etc, will be transported in a Navy aircraft.
Malappuram: People wade across waterlogged streets as heavy monsoon rains cause floods, at Malappuram in Kerala on Saturday. (Photo: PTI)
The IMD has put off red alert in Kerala for the first time since August 8. It has issued orange alert in Ernakulam, Idukki and Pathanamthitta with a heavy rainfall forecast.
Thousands of volunteers from across the country are working hard to manage the supply chain of essentials for the people of flood-hit Kerala. Inside the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium in the heart of Kochi, the Ernakulam district administration is coordinating and channelising food.
Ex-collector MG Rajamanickam, who is the brain behind the initiative said, supplies for 1,60,000 people were sent to relief camps on the outskirts of Kochi.
Flights to and from Kochi will commence from Monday as the authorities have made arrangements at the local naval air station for civilian flights after the local airport was inundated due to heavy rains and shut for operations.
The decision was taken after Air India subsidiary Alliance Air conducted a test flight from Bangalore to Cochin on Saturday. The Ministry of Civil Aviation had delegated a team comprising officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviaiton (DGCA), Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), Airports Authority of India (AAI) to examine the possibility of commencing civilian flights from the naval facility.
Kerala was not under the Central Water Commission’s radar for flood forecasting this year. A CWC official in the flood forecast monitoring department said the reason was because Kerala did not put in a request before the monsoons began and the agency largely monitors inter-state basins.
Further, since Friday, all of CWC’s hydrological observation gauges in Kerala have either gone under water or the agency has lost contact with them, the official said. “Most of our sites are under water since Friday, either submerged by the rising water or our communication has been lost. Gauges are one-two metres above the HFL (highest flood line) and they are all submerged now.”
Pictures from various collection camps
Following directions from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) on Saturday, fire department teams across the state have been asked to stay on standby with boats and keep rescue kits ready for rescue operations in flood affected Kerala. The Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services (AFES) has been asked to keep four teams of 30 personnel on standby to leave for Kerala at a one-hour notice. Additional Chief Fire Officer Rajesh Bhatt said, “We are waiting for the next order to move personnel and rescue equipment.” Read full story.
With Kerala witnessing its worst flood in 100 years, UAE’s Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum described the people of Kerala as part of their “success story” and decided to lend a helping hand to the flood-ravaged state. Sheikh Mohammed on Saturday instructed the immediate formation of a national emergency committee tasked with providing relief assistance to the people affected by the floods in Kerala. On Twitter, Sheikh Mohammed urged everyone to contribute generously towards this initiative. “The people of Kerala have always been and are still part of our success story in the UAE. We have a special responsibility to help and support those affected, especially during this holy and blessed days,” he said. Read full story.
Dozens of volunteers came together near the Supreme Court on Saturday evening to collect relief material for those affected by the devastating floods in Kerala. Lending a helping hand was Justice Kurian Joseph, who stayed back till late into the night. The initiative was launched by a group of young lawyers through social media on Saturday morning. By the evening, they had managed to collect seven truckloads of relief material. This included feeding bottles, clothes, slippers, utensils, sanitary napkins, water bottles, essential medicines and non-perishable food items, including rice, pulses and biscuits. Justice Joseph worked alongside volunteers, labelling the boxes and providing some much-needed moral boost. Read full story.
With Kerala battling floods unleashed by heavy rain, the Delhi government as well as residents of the capital have sought to lend a helping hand. Officials at Kerala House have, meanwhile, requested that instead of giving relief material in kind, people should contribute to the relief fund. S Shyam Kumar, joint secretary to the government, Non-resident Keralites Affairs department, said, “We are mostly accepting demand draft and cheque. We request people to contribute to the relief funds as food materials are difficult to transport. Even if we send that by air, it will reach Thiruvananthapuram, but cannot reach the places most affected.” Read full story.