13 killed in Kerala in rain-related incidents

Thiruvananthapuram: Torrential monsoon rains lashing several parts of Kerala have claimed at least 13 lives in the last two days, officials said on Sunday.

Four people died today -- two inThiruvananthapuram and one each at Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha districts in rain-related incidents, officials in the state Control Room for disaster management here said.

As the Met department warned of strong winds along and off Kerala coast and over Lakshadweep islands in the next 24 hours and asked fishermen not to venture into sea, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan asked officials to be alert and take utmost care.

"People living in hilly taluks need to be extra careful.

Government has taken necessary precautions to meet any exigency. Control rooms have been opened across the state," he tweeted.

In the state capital, a man was electrocuted to death when he came in contact with a power line that snapped in gusty winds at nearby Neyyatinkara, while another died in a tree fall.

According to revenue authorities, nine people died in rain-related incidents in Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod in the last two days.

Most of the deaths occurred due to drowning in swollen rivers and falling of uprooted trees, they said.

As the South-West monsoon remains active, most parts of the state have been receiving rains in the past few days.

Vadakara in Kozhikode district recorded the maximum rainfall of 17 cm in the 24 hours ending 8.30 am today, followed by Parambikulam (Palakkad district) 13 cm, Kannur, Taliparamba (Kannur district) and Peermade (Idukki district) 12 cm each. The rains have damaged crops and property in Idukki, Kozhikode, and Kannur districts, officials said, adding the loss to agriculture and property was being assessed.

Traffic was disrupted in the high range Idukki district following landslips and after trees fell on roads, they said. Sea erosion was also reported from some coastal areas where affected fishermen families had been shifted to relief camps.

The Met department said strong winds with a speed of 40-50 kmph, gusting to 60 kmph, are likely along and off Kerala coasts and over Lakshadweep areas in the next 24 hours.