Kerala Rains: Red alert in 10 districts; 12 die in rain-related incidents since Sunday

A red alert has been issued for 10 districts for August 3 and nine districts for August 4.

Thiruvanathapuram: 12 people lost their lives in different rain related incidents in Kerala since Sunday, officials said. Amidst heavy rainfall in the state, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a ‘red alert’, warning of heavy rainfall, in 10 districts of Kerala, and an ‘orange’ alert in the rest. In fact, the weather body has issued red alerts in different districts till August 4 — the highest rainfall warning has been issued for 10 districts on August 3, and nine districts on August 4.

Owing to rain, the Kerala government on Tuesday announced that the state’s Film Awards ceremony, scheduled to be held on August 3, has been postponed, The ceremony was to be held at Nishagandhi open auditorium. The Cultural Affairs Minister of the state V N Vasavan has announced that the new date would be announced later.

Meanwhile, a wild elephant was stranded in the middle of Chalakudy river for hours after heavy rainfall in the area during Monday night led to a rise in water levels by nearly 5 metres. After hours of attemtpting to get through, the elephant got to the forest safely on the other side.