Focus shifts to providing help for 600,000 in relief camps as rain forecast to ease

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Water levels have started to fall in the southern Indian state of Kerala and rain is predicted to ease in the coming days as rescue operations continue to free thousands of people still marooned by the worst flooding in a century.

With the lull in heavy rain on Sunday, focus began to shift to providing for the more than 600,000 people sheltering in relief camps, with shortages of medicine, fuel and fresh water reported.

About 13 deaths were recorded on Sunday, a sharp fall from 33 on Saturday and more than 100 in the preceding days when water levels rose rapidly. More than 370 people have died since the monsoon season began in May, the majority in the past 11 days.

An official from the India Meteorological Department told the Asian News Agency that rain was likely to ease over the next four to five days, giving a window for the military-led effort to rescue those still trapped or to air-drop food and water to stranded towns.

The severest flood warnings were withdrawn from districts across the state on Sunday. “There is no red or amber colour code warning for any district today,” the department’s director, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, said. “For tomorrow, the colour warning is green.”

The armed forces reported that 23,213 people had been rescued in recent days and 2,000 had been provided with medical aid.

Play Video 0:23 Aerial view shows scale of monsoon flooding in Kerala, India – video

“What prevails in Kerala is not a situation that is going out of control,” the state’s chief minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, said. “Things have improved a lot.”

Kerala frequently floods during the monsoon season, but 250% more rain fell than usual in the week to 15 August, forcing authorities to open the floodgates of dangerously full dams.

The extent of the damage will remain unclear until the floodwaters subside, but Vijayan said at least 83,000km (51,570 miles) of roads would need to be repaired. About 20,000 homes and 40,000 hectares (98,800 acres) of crops are also said to have been destroyed.

More than 4,000 relief camps have been established across Kerala and disaster management officials said they were now focused on preventing the outbreak of water-borne diseases.

Some residents in less affected cities such as Kochi have begun returning to their homes to assess the damage. “The entire house is covered with mud,” TP Johnny, a resident of the city, told Reuters. “All our household articles, including the TV and fridge, have been destroyed.”