Kerala floods: Death toll reaches 167, PM Modi to visit state today

In order to take stock of the situation in Kerala which is grappling with heavy floods, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit the state after the funeral of former prime minister A B Vajpayee.

Image: ANI

New Delhi: In Kerala, 167 have died in rain-related incidents in the monsoon-ravaged region, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Friday.

Death toll due to floods has risen to 167: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan #KeralaFloods (ANI)

— ABP News (@abpnewstv) August 17, 2018

Army, Navy, Air Force and NDRF personnel have begun rescuing people stranded in the worst affected areas of Ernakulam, Pathanamthitta and Thrissur districts. Over 25 trains were either cancelled or rescheduled in Kerala. Kochi Metro operations have not been affected so far. The operations at the Kochi International Airport will remain suspended till August 26, with runways being flooded. In order to take stock of the situation in Kerala which is grappling with heavy floods, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit the state after the funeral of former prime minister A B Vajpayee. He is likely to undertake an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas tomorrow. Calling the situation as “unfortunate”, PM tweeted from his handle that he would be reaching the state later in the evening. He wrote on his Twitter handle that he had a telephonic conversation with Kerala CM P Vijayan and discussed the flood situation across the state and reviewed rescue operations. Later this evening, he would head towards Kerala.

Had a telephone conversation with Kerala CM Shri Pinarayi Vijayan just now. We discussed the flood situation across the state and reviewed rescue operations.

Later this evening, I will be heading to Kerala to take stock of the unfortunate situation due to flooding. @CMOKerala — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 17, 2018

Prime Minister Modi will be attending former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's funeral till the evening. After the funeral, Modi is likely to leave for Kerala. A red alert has been issued today in all 13 districts except Kasaragod. Red alert has been issued for tomorrow also in Ernakulam and Idukki districts. 5 units of NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) have reached Thiruvananthapuram this morning and deployed for rescue operations. 35 teams are expected to reach there today. Winds at the speed of 60 kmph is expected in Pathanamthitta,  Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode and Wayanad districts.