The death toll in accidents brought on by torrential rains in Kerala rose to 67, with 24 deaths reported yesterday alone, officials said.
Rising water stranded tens of thousands of people and forced the closure of Kochi airport.
Authorities have placed local agencies on the highest alert level in what has turned out to be the state’s worst monsoon in almost a century.
Kerala has been pounded by heavy rains since August 8.
Most of the victims have drowned or were caught in landslides.
“The situation is grim with most of the rain-related deaths being reported today. Malappuram was the worst-hit accounting for 11 out of 24 deaths,” an official at the state disaster management control room said.
“The number of people evacuated from low-lying areas to government shelters has also more than doubled to 86,000,” he added.
The Kochi airport will remain closed till Saturday, due to heavy rains and resultant flooding, he added.
The airport handles 1,460 flights a week, and nearly 900 flights will be affected by the closure.
Airport authorities asked all airlines to cancel their flights until the situation improves.
“The taxiway remains entirely flooded, and the water level is constantly rising,” said P S Jayan, the airport’s corporate communications manager.
“The operations will resume at 2 pm on Saturday. We are working hard to drain out the stormwater.”
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor spoke to Minister of Sate for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha and expressed concern about Kochi-bound international flights being diverted to Mumbai.
He tweeted it was causing great inconvenience to Keralites travelling home and suggested diverting them to Thiruvananthapuram or other nearby airports.
Train services have also been affected, with many being delayed or cancelled.
The heavy rains which forced the state authorities to release excess waters from reservoirs, causing floods downstream, are expected to continue till Saturday.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan appealed to people in the state to take all precautions as many parts of the state would see heavy rains over the next four days.
“Presently, 35 reservoirs in the state are releasing water. Many districts in the state are facing floods,” Vijayan said on Twitter.
He also sought federal intervention to pressure Tamil Nadu to lower the water level in the Mullaperiyar dam which poses a threat to four downstream districts.
The water level of the century-old dam in Idukki, operated by Tamil Nadu, has reached its maximum capacity of 142ft.
The chief minister blamed Tamil Nadu for the dangerous rise in water level which could have been prevented if it had released water in a phased manner.
“The rain will continue for the next four days too, and we all need to be careful,” he said.
“We’re witnessing something that has never happened before in the history of Kerala.” 
He said almost all dams are now opened. 
“Most of our water treatment plants are submerged, motors are damaged. We’re keeping all this in mind, but our priority is to get drinking water to the people.” 
“I have briefed the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) and Home Minister (Rajnath Singh) of the serious situation prevailing here.” 
More and more people are pouring into relief camps, including those who had earlier returned to their homes in Ernakulam, Kozhikode, Malappuram and Wayanad districts.
The capital district witnessed heavy rain which submerged several low-lying areas. Officials hurriedly opened 14 relief camps.
Among those who had to be shifted from their homes were veteran Congress leader V M Sudheeran and his wife. Actor-turned Bharatiya Janata Party MP Suresh Gopi’s house in Thiruvananthapuram was also flooded.
The famed tourist destination in Munnar has been closed for traffic, following flooding of the Old Munnar town.
The Sabarimala temple has warned pilgrims not to reach the shrine due to the surging river waters in the vicinity.
The state last saw such devastating flooding in 1924.

PM intervenes on dam issue

Following the timely intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh yesterday, a mounting tension between Kerala and Tamil Nadu over the rising water level in Mullaperiyar dam and its outflow has been resolved, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said. He said following heavy rain in and around the catchment areas of the dam, the water level has reached 142ft. “With the water level rising, the sluice gates of the dam were opened, but the inflow into the dam was higher than the outflow and that was a cause of concern. Given the situation, our chief secretary spoke to his counterpart in Tamil Nadu. We also brought this to the notice of the prime minister and the home minister. Soon they intervened and have sorted out the issue and now the outflow and the inflow has become the same,” Vijayan said. Over the years, the dam issue between Kerala and Tamil Nadu has been a bone of contention.




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