Kerala has declared holidays in seven districts on Friday after it was hit by flood fury yet again.
The state saw landslides, rivers going into spate, bridges getting washed away, flights getting diverted, trains getting delayed and road traffic coming to a standstill in many places.
People are on the edge again on a day that marks the first anniversary of last year's deluge that killed over 450 people.
The Collectors have declared a holiday in seven districts - Pathanamthitta, Malappuram, Kottayam, Kozhikode, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Idukki.
Three people died in Idukki district, two in Wayanad and one in Attapady, Palakkad, taking the death toll since Wednesday to eight. Efforts are on to rescue five persons who have been stuck inside the Kalpathy temple in Palakkad while another person is missing from Periyar river in Aluva. In Idukki, areas including Munnar, Mankulam and Marayur have been cut off in the rain fury.
Flights were diverted from Kozhikode and Cochin airport while trains services were affected after speed restrictions were imposed due to high winds and poor visibility. Nearly all train services were delayed after trees fell on the tracks in many places. Road traffic were affected in many places, especially in northern parts and Idukki due to landslips.
Officials said over 2000 people have been moved to relief camps across the state. Worryingly, the heavy rains are likely to continue till Saturday with the Met Department declaring red alert in Idukki, Kozhikode and Wayanad districts where the Met predicted 204 mm rains in 24 hours.
Orange alerts have been declared in Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kannur, Kasargode on Friday where the Met predicted 115-204.5 mm rains.
Meanwhile, in Thiruvananthapuram, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan called an emergency meeting of review the situation, and asked the Centre to provide 10 teams from National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). A team each has already been rushed to Nilambur and Idukki. The Chief Minister also directed the District Collectors to take all precautions to ensure that people are moved to safety.