Kochi (India) – Reuters
At least 22 people have been killed in heavy rains in the southern Indian state of Kerala over the weekend, officials say.
The rains led to floods and landslides across the state, prompting authorities to call in the Indian Army and Navy to rescue residents.
Authorities and eyewitnesses confirmed that about 13 of them were killed in the landslide in Kodikkal village.
“There were four landslides in one mountain, causing the water to flow down and the other to fall down,” a local told the Asian International News Agency.
For his part, the landslide-hit Kottayam district’s top government official P.K. Jayasree said almost half of the victims belonged to the same family.
“One family lost six members,” he added.
According to a report released by the Kerala Disaster Management Authority, light rains are expected across the state despite the withdrawal of weather warnings in many parts of the state.
In 2018, Kerala experienced the worst floods in a century, killing at least 400 people and displacing about 200,000.
India, with a population of 1.3 billion, depends on rainfall to support its population, most of which depend on agriculture. But heavy rains can cause floods, landslides and water-borne diseases.