Kerala remains under a red alert, the highest warning level issued during emergencies in India, according to India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), which has deployed 53 teams across the state.
A total of 780 personnel are now involved in the rescue mission. Meanwhile, over 100,000 people have been forced to seek shelter in relief camps, NDRF senior commander Rekha Nambiyar told CNN.
Search and rescue efforts have been further complicated by limited transport; railway tracks and roads are too flooded to use, and operations at the international airport in the city of Kochi have been suspended until Saturday.
Rescue teams have taken to the air instead. Pinarayi Vijayan, Kerala’s chief minister, tweeted on Thursday asking residents to “stand in open areas on top of buildings and houses” to be airlifted.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has asked the defense ministry to step up relief and rescue operations, announced Friday that he would visit Kerala that evening to “take stock of the unfortunate situation.”
Monsoon rains are to be expected in India this time of the year. But after days of abnormally heavy rains, 34 of the state’s 40 dams reached full capacity and were opened to release water in an effort to prevent potentially disastrous breaches, officials said last week.
“For the first time in history, 27 dams in the state had to be opened. Never before has the state witnessed a calamity of this scale,” Vijayan said in a statement.
Source : Nbcnewyork