Flash floods and landslips claim 27 lives in Kerala
BRIDE AND GROOM SAIL TO WEDDING VENUE IN A HUGE COOKING POT
AN INDIAN couple sailed across submerged streets in a massive cooking pot to reach their wedding venue on Monday (18), as heavy rains flooded the southern state of Kerala.
The couple borrowed the pot from a local temple and enlisted two men to push the makeshift boat, images that have gone viral on social media showed.
“It has turned into a wedding which we never imagined,” the bride told local media channel Asianet soon after the wedding.
Flooding and landslides caused by heavy rains have killed at least 27 people across the state. While their wedding venue was also partially flooded, the pair was determined to tie the knot in a small ceremony.
“Should have booked a boat instead of a car...” a man can be heard saying in the background of one video.
According to media reports, both husband and wife are healthcare workers.
Images showed cars and buses submerged by the floodwaters after heavy rains battered Kerala over the past four days.
Rescuers searched for survivors on Monday as the army, navy and air force assisted with relief and rescue operations.
The state government said it has evacuated thousands of people and set up over 100 relief camps. Residents were cut off in parts of the state as the rains, which started to intensify from late Friday (15), swelled rivers and flooded roads.
Some 11 bodies were found in Idukki district and another 14 in Kottayam district, officials said, after the areas were hit by landslides and flash floods.
“It was my livelihood. Everything is gone,” a distraught man told Kerala news channel Manorama TV in Koottickal town in Kottayam, which was hit by a landslide.
“The hill broke off near us. There has been a lot of damage and loss. The house has gone. Children have gone,” a woman from Koottickal added.
Video shared on social media showed buses and cars submerged in floodwaters.
Prime minister Narendra Modi tweeted his condolences and said authorities were working to help those affected.
The India Meteorological Department said the heavy rains, caused by a low pressure area over the southeastern Arabian Sea and Kerala, were expected to ease this week. In northern India, some states including the Himalayan regions of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh are forecast to experience “heavy to very heavy rainfall” in the next two to three days, the weather bureau said last Sunday (17).
The northern weather system would be caused by a low pressure area over Afghanistan and its surroundings interacting with strong winds from the Bay of Bengal, it added. (AFP)