IDUKKI (KERALA): Many people languishing in the relief camps after they were forced to rush out of their homes when all the gates of Idukki reservoir in Kerala where opened, said they were frightened to return to their homes.
All five shutters of Cheruthoni dam, part of Idukki reservoir, were opened on Friday after incessant heavy rains precariously increased the water level in the reservoir.
Most of those in the relief camp had to rush out of their houses with only the clothes they were wearing. They said muddy homes, wells brimming with dirty water, clogged toilets, snakes and other reptiles crawling inside their houses were giving them sleepless nights.
Nearly 400 flood-affected people, including 85 children from Keerithod in Kanjikuzhy panchayat near Cheruthoni are in the camp for the past two days as a precautionary measure after water was released from Idukki dam.
Eight villages have been affected due to the release of water from the dam and nearly 1,000 people have been shifted to 20 relief camps, official sources said.
This is for the first time in the history that all the gates of the dam were opened, underlying the gravity of the situation. “We had to rush out with few belongings. We do not know what has happened to our homes,” a woman said, adding that people coming from the area told them that water was flowing like “giant sea waves” in front of our homes.
“We are scared to return to our homes,” she said. However, life in the camp was quite comfortable. There is a common kitchen and all of us are eating together, she added.
Tincy, a panchayat member said as prior warning about the release of water had been issued, any kind of human casualty was avoided.
Meanwhile, people living at Kariveli Mannapuram in Aluva in Ernakulam district said mud and slush filled their homes due to waterlogging and well water has turned muddy. South Indian actor, Mammooty, visited a relief camp at Parvoor in Ernakulam district on Friday.