Kerala battered by intense rains, rivers in spate, trees uprooted

Intense rains lashed Kerala on Sunday, uprooting trees across the state, including one that fell on a moving train in Thrissur and another that caused a fatality in neighbouring Kozhikode. Houses were damaged, rivers were in spate, and shutters of some dams were raised in the state as the southwest monsoon gained strength. An uprooted tree crashed onto a moving train near the railway bridge in Cheruthuruthy in Thrissur district on Sunday morning.
Roads were waterlogged in many rural and urban areas of the state as heavy rains continued to lash the state throughout the day. Five shutters of the Malankara dam in Idukki district were raised on Sunday morning to release the excess water, according to an official statement. Those who live on the banks of the Thodupuzha and Moovattupuzha rivers should exercise caution in view of the raising of dam shutters, it said. State Revenue Minister K Rajan said some places might receive huge rains within a short period of time without any warning, leading to flash floods and landslides. The minister said preparations were in place to set up over 3,000 camps to accommodate over five lakh people if required.The IMD further said that with the arrival of the monsoon, heavy rains are expected to continue across Kerala and it sounded red and orange alerts in several districts of the state for the next few days.
In view of the monsoon arrival and the red alerts issued by the IMD, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the government will be on alert for the next one week in the prevailing situation. “A state-level review meeting has been convened and instructions have been given to complete the rain-related preparations immediately,” he said in a Facebook post. He also said that pre-monsoon review meetings and preparatory activities have been completed in all districts. The CM further said that a letter has been sent to the Centre requesting deployment of nine teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) in the state. “Instructions have also been given to shift people, living in areas prone to landslides, to safe places as a precaution. Control rooms have been set up in all taluk offices in the state,” he said