Heavy monsoon rains kill 67 in Kerala, airport closed

NEW DELHI: Torrential monsoon rains have disrupted air and train services in the southern Indian state of Kerala, where flooding, landslides and bridge collapses have killed at least 67 people in the past week, officials said Wednesday.

The Cochin International Airport was closed till Saturday afternoon as water released from the Idukki dam flooded the area. Airport Director A C K Nair called the development "unprecedented".

READ ALSO: Doha flights affected as Kochi airport closed till Saturday due to flooded runway

"We decided to take this step because since last night dams like Idukki, Mullaperiyar, Idamalayar have opened their shutters. The water released reaches the Periyar river and one of its tributaries flows close to the airport and it is overflowing, sending the water to our operational area," said Nair.

He pointed out that with more rain predicted in the coming days, it was decided to close the airport operations.

"Once the water recedes, it will take us 24 hours to clean up. Then only flights will resume. As of now, we have decided to close down till 2 pm on August 18," said Nair.

Cochin airport is one of the three international airports in the state, and the busiest.

"We have asked all airlines, domestic and foreign, to reschedule their Cochin flights either from Trivandrum or from Calicut," Suresh Prabhu, India's civil aviation minister said on Twitter.

"For international flights, this will require special dispensation which has been granted considering the emergency DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) is coordinating," he added.

Fire and Rescue personnel evacuate local residents in an inflatable boat from a flooded area at Muppathadam near Eloor in Kochi's Ernakulam district, in the Indian state of Kerala on August 15, 2018. (AFP)

Authorities asked tourists to stay away from the popular hill station of Munnar in Idukki district because of flooding. Kerala is a popular tourist destination with scenic landscapes, waterfalls and beautiful beaches.

People also have been asked to avoid the Sabarimala hill shrine as the water level in the nearby rain-fed Pampa River was rising. Sabarimala, a Hindu pilgrimage center in the mountain ranges of Pathanamthitta district, attracts around 45 million devotees every year.

Krishna Kumar, a relief official, said there will be no immediate respite for thousands of people in state-run relief camps with more rain and winds forecast until Saturday.

Heavy rains forced state authorities to release excess water from dozens of reservoirs, causing floods downstream. The flooding has submerged vast areas in 12 out of 14 districts in the state.

With another 25 deaths reported across the state on Wednesday, Kerala state officials put the death toll since Aug. 8 at 67, the New Delhi television news channel said.

Three new teams of Military Engineering Task Force arrived in the state capital in the night. A team of naval officials has already reached Alappuzha district for relief and rescue.

Other defence forces and disaster response teams already in the state for the past few days are busy in putting up makeshift bridges and clearing roads in the affected areas in Kozhikode, Wayanad, Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam, Idukki and Kannur districts.

The heaviest rains and floods since 1924 have caused massive destruction, leaving more than 75,000 people in relief camps.