Kerala is reeling under severe conditions due to heavy rain and floods since August 8. At least 357 people have died in rain-related incidents in the state since May. The Centre has announced a relief package of Rs 500 crore for the state, and massive relief operations by the Indian Army, the Navy, the National Disaster Response Force, the State Disaster Response Force and local groups are under way.
There has also been an outpouring of support for the victims on social media, which has been donating for flood relief.
Here is a compilation of videos on the floods:
CNN News18 Senior Editor Shreya Dhoundial tweeted a video of a fisherman in Vengara town, Jaisal KP, lying face down in water so that women and children could use his back as a step to get into a rescue boat. “600 fishermen helping out in Kerala floods are the unsung heroes,” she said.
NDTV Executive Editor Uma Sudhir tweeted a video of a new tunnel built in the Western Ghats, which is not yet operational. However, the landslides around it, in Kudiran area in Thrissur district, are exposing commuters to high risk.
Sudhir also said that two landslips in another part of Kudiran have trapped 20 vehicles between them. “National Disaster Response Force rescue teams from Coimbatore are trying to reach Chalakudy [which is near Kudiran] where people are waiting to be rescued,” she tweeted, adding that the road needs to be cleared soon.
The Indian Coast Guard tweeted a video of its personnel swimming across a flooded area near Puthukulangara Devi Temple in Othera village in Pathanamthitta district to rescue people marooned at the shrine.
Shreya Dhoundial tweeted a video of an Indian Navy helicopter landing on a narrow rooftop to rescue people. However, the location of the video is not known.
She also tweeted a video from a helicopter, showing the massive flooding in Chalakudy town below. Chalakudy is one of the worst-affected regions and several NDRF teams are in the town for rescue operations.
NDTV Kerala Bureau Chief Sneha Koshy’s video showed Indian Air Force choppers landing to refill with relief materials in Kochi before taking off again. “Amidst all the despair, I saw – no felt – this amazing moment,” she tweeted.
Journalist Arun Dev recorded a video of the main road leading to Mukkodlu, a village on a hilltop in Kodagu district of Karnataka, where at least 70 people are still trapped. Dev said two teams of the Indian Army went up to the hilltop trekking, because the main road has been damaged. They have rescued around 230 people.
The News Minute Editor-in-Chief Dhanya Rajendran tweeted an appeal by actor Parvathy Thirovothu, from the Regional Sports Centre in Kochi, which has been receiving flood relief items for the last seven days. This material is being sent out to almost 800 sub-centres, Thirovothu said. She appealed to people from other cities, like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad, to find a collection centre to send items to Kochi – pointing out that the Centre was running short of items.
Wing Commander Prasanth of the Garud Special Force of the Indian Air Force rescued a toddler from a rooftop in the flood-hit town of Alappuzha on Sunday.
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