Kerala floods kill dozens with 36,000 evacuated

Flash floods in Kerala have killed 37 people and displaced around 36,000 according to Indian officials after heavy monsoons led to landslides and overflowing reservoirs across the southern state.

Kerala, famed for its pristine palm-lined beaches and tea plantations, is battered by the monsoon every year but the rains have been particularly severe this season.

Those forced from their homes “have moved to 350 relief camps across the state”, said an official at the Kerala State Disaster Management control room.

The army has been roped in for rescue efforts in Kerala after two days of heavy rain drove authorities to open the shutters of 27 reservoirs to drain out the excess water.

One of the five shutters of a large reservoir in the mountainous Idukki district was opened for the first time in 26 years.