Devastated State of Kerala seeks help from Fellow Countrymen

About 22, 000 people were rescued from the flood-hit Indian state of Kerala on Sunday after monsoon downpours finally stopped, officials reported.

Military teams, as well as disaster response forces and fishermen nearby, reached some of the most detrimental hit areas.

Helicopters brought the needed supplies to the communities’ cut-off by 2 weeks of rain.

About 350 people have been killed, where most deaths are due to the landslides which started as soon as monsoon began in June.

Kerala’s chief minister, Pinarayi Vijayan said the number of men and women taking refuge in the 5, 645 relief camps now stood over almost 7 lacs.

But he vowed on Sunday “to save even the last person stranded”.

Anil Vasudevan, the head of Kerala’s disaster management team, told he was preparing to take care of a possible outbreak of airborne, waterborne diseases that usually happens in temporary relief centers.

He said they have separated three people who had got chickenpox in a camp in Aluva, about Two-fifty Kilometer (155 miles) from Thiruvananthapuram.

Rescue officials said on Sunday they were concentrating on the town involving Chengannur, where about five thousand people were reported to be trapped, and throughout the Alapuzha and Ernakulam districts.

In Chengannur, local politician Saji Cherian previously broke down in tears on TV describing the crisis there.

As the rain eased, several evacuated residents returned to determine what has been left of their homes.

“The entire house is covered with mud. It will take days to clean to make it livable,” TP Johnny, 60 years, told Reuters in Cheranelloor, a suburb of the commercial cash of Cochin.

Survivors at evacuation locations have described spending days without food or water.

A 20-year-old Inderjeet Kumar told AFP news agency, they were the scariest hours of our life,”  from a good church shelter in the stricken Thrissur district.

“There was no power, no food, and no water – even though it was all around us.”

India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi surveyed the state from the air on Saturday and promised a quick allow of 5bn Indian rupees (£55m; $71m).

Initial estimates suggest the floods possess caused £2. 3bn of damage, AFP reports, but this is expected to rise.

Chief Ministers Relief Fund:

You may make a donation on the CM’s Relief fund in Kerala. You can head to https://donation.cmdrf.kerala.gov.in/ to make a donation. You might also send money by cheque/DD to Principal Secretary (Finance) Treasurer, Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund, Secretariat, Thiruvananthapuram. Those wishing to donate via net banking can make use of the following details:

Account number: 67319948232

Bank: SBI
Branch: City Branch, TVM
IFSC Code: SBIN0070028
Name of Donee: CMDRF
PAN: AAAGD0584M
SWIFT CODE: SBININBBT