Heavy rains, flooding, landslides in Kerala; orange alert in 4 districts

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As heavy rains continued to batter Kerala, landslides and flooding were reported from many parts of the state, especially its southernmost district of Thiruvananthapuram, which was severely affected by waterlogging in several areas on Sunday.

According to visuals shown on TV channels, the heavy rains since Saturday led to waterlogging and flooding of streets, roads and low-lying areas of Thiruvananthapuram district.

The Technopark colony in Kazhakootam, a suburban area in the district, saw water entering homes leading to people being evacuated from homes, as per the visuals.

Water entered hundreds of homes in the district and in some areas there were also incidents of landslides, according to the visuals.

Visuals also showed cars almost submerged while rescuers evacuated people from homes in inflatable boats to camps in some parts of Thiruvananthapuram.

State General Education Minister V Sivankutty, who visited the flooded areas, said in a Facebook post that the rains since the previous night have created an unusual situation in the city of Thiruvananthapuram.

The minister said the district administration was conducting relief operations on a wartime basis and all kinds of the aid and assistance would be provided to those affected.

After a ministerial level meeting was held, Sivankutty, at a press briefing, said many parts of Thiruvananthapuram, especially the capital city, have been seriously affected by floods and waterlogging.