A man standing in front of the rubble of his house on the outskirts of Kozhikode district in Kerala. Photo: AFP
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https://scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/2160271/death-toll-flooding-kerala-india-shoots-past-300 South Asia
Death toll from flooding in Kerala, India, shoots past 300
Number dead triples in 24 hours after days of heavy monsoon rains swept the southern Indian state
Volunteers from the Kerala Adventure Sports Club carry aid in a village on the outskirts of Kozhikode district, about 385 km north of Trivandrum in the south Indian state of Kerala on August 17, 2018. Photo: AFP
More than 300 people have been killed since late May in the Indian state of Kerala by the worst flooding to hit the region in a century, authorities said on Friday, as troop reinforcements stepped up rescue efforts.
The state – a key international tourist draw with its tropical mountains and beaches – has been battered by record monsoon rainfall in recent days and is “facing the worst flood in 100 years”, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.
In a Twitter statement released by his office, he said there had been “324 lives lost”, a tripling of the death toll in the last 24 hours.
Vijayan added that 223,139 people have been moved to more than 1,500 relief camps.
With thousands still trapped, power and communication lines down and fresh alerts of further torrential rain, authorities warned of even more trouble ahead.
More than 30 military helicopters and 320 boats are attempting rescues across Kerala.
A woman watches people walking through flooded streets on the outskirts of Kozhikode district in Kerala, India on August 17, 2018. Photo: AFP
Extra troops have been sent in and local fishermen have also joined the operation with their boats.
People all over the state of 33 million people have made panic-stricken appeals on social media for help, saying they cannot get through to rescue services.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was set to arrive in the stricken state on Friday night.