KOCHI: For 72 hours, they lived under the shadow of death. Heart-wrenching scenes awaited people of Chalakudy town and Meloor panchayat as they returned home after water receded. A thick layer of mud had accumulated inside the houses. Vehicles washed away by the flood waters were found scattered on the streets and the river bank. Carcass of cattle, dogs and poultry were found scattered all around spreading unbearable stench. There was no power supply and the water in the wells had turned muddy.
As the monsoon clouds start hovering over the sky, fear is palpable among the residents living on the banks of Chalakudy river. Though they know it was a once-in-a-century flood that devastated their lives on August 16, 2018, people of Chalakudy don’t want to take chances. Many families living on the banks of the river have purchased new boats to escape a possible deluge.
“My aged parents stay alone in our two-storeyed house barely 150 m from the river bank. Luckily, I was at home when the whole village was inundated. By evening on August 15, the water had reached our doorstep. But we never thought the water will reach the first floor of the house,” recalls Shaju Varghese, of Vadakkan Veedu at Meloor.
“By around 4.30 am on August 16, the water rose up till the sunshade of the house. I swam to the river bank to get a small country boat which was tied to a tree. I rowed to my house, helped my parents get on board the boat and took them to a safer place. It was difficult to navigate the boat as the river was in spate,” said Shaju employed in a resort in Thiruvananthapuram.
This time, ahead of the monsoon, Shaju has purchased a new boat. “The boat I used to transport my parents to safety was a small one. It could accommodate only three persons and the chances of it capsizing is high. So I purchased a new country boat, which can carry up to eight people,” he said.
Many residents of Vettukadu, a hamlet in Meloor, located on the banks of the river, have kept boats ready at their houses to escape the floods.
“As many as 45 houses were completely damaged in Meloor panchayat while 941 houses suffered partial damage. Apart from the two deaths at Divine Care Centre, there was no loss of life in Meloor. But the agriculture sector suffered a huge loss. I lost nine cows, five pigs and 4,700 poultry in the flood. Around 400 inmates of the Divine Care Centre, most of them mentally unstable, were wailing as there was no food and the area was surrounded by water. We delivered them food and took care of the inmates for three days,” V D Thomas, Chalakudy block panchayat member, told Express.
The Chalakudy municipal authorities and the Thrissur district administration are all geared up to face any eventuality. “The district administration, the Police and Revenue Department and the municipality have decided to work in coordination if the threat of another flood arises. If water is released in large quantity from Parambikulam and Sholayar dam, Peringalkuthu dam authorities will alert the district administration and we have chalked out a detailed plan for evacuation and relief and rescue operations,” said Wilson Panattuparambil, Chalakudy municipal vice-chairman.
During the mid-August flood, authorities had to evacuate the flood victims from many relief camps as water entered the camps on the second day. The municipality has identified places that were not affected by flood and camps will be opened in these areas. Last time, rescue workers couldn’t reach the western parts of Chalakudy town as the south flyover obstructed entry of boats into the area. This time around, t municipality has identified a route through Guruthipala.
“If Peringalkuthu dam overflows, we will make mike announcements and evacuate people within an hour. The municipality has prepared a disaster management project for the town and has kept aside `5 lakh for immediate relief. We had spent Rs 2 crore on relief operations. All shops in the town got submerged and the traders here had suffered a huge loss during the floods. The government did not provide any relief to the traders. The municipality waived rent for shops owned by us for three months,” said Wilson.