Kerala floods: Thousands stranded atop buildings and wait for rescuers; seek help through social media platforms

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has confirmed that more helicopters will be deployed in flood-hit Kerala to rescue the victims. It comes after thousands of stranded people shared videos and audio messages to request help. These appeals for help have gone viral across social media platforms.

Call for help

A Twitter user named Lakshmideepu uploaded a video showing flood victims stranded on the second floor of their house. In the clip, a man named Premanandan was seen requesting help from the emergency forces to rescue his family. Unfortunately, an infant was also trapped inside the house. Premanandan had said that water levels were slowly rising to the second floor.

"We do not have access to food or water. There is a small infant with us. We are in deep trouble. Please rescue us from this scene. The water levels are rising up to the second floor. Please rescue us to a place where the ground can be seen. We are from Aluva Kadungalloor, Please save us," Premanandan said in the video.

The video was uploaded 12 hours back, and we are still not clear whether they have been rescued or not. If they are still stranded, we request authorities to fasten their seatbelts and rush to the scene to save valuable lives.

Conditions in relief centres

In the meantime, several people including private organisations have started various initiatives to help the flood victims. Modern Bread factory in Edapally has opened their production unit for 24 hours, and they are apparently giving bread and other food materials to the victims.

Even though the state government has opened relief centres across the state, many people living there are finding it hard to meet their daily amenities. International Business Times India representative visited one of the relief centres in Palakkad and understood that the major problem is a lack of toilets. The non-availability of sanitary napkins is another problem faced by women who stay in relief centres.

How to lend your helping hand to Kerala flood victims?

The most effective way by which help can be sent to the victims is by sending money to the Kerala Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund. Here are the bank details to which the fund can be sent.

Bank Account Number: 67319948232

Bank Name: State Bank of India

Branch: City Branch Thiruvananthapuram

IFSC Code: SBIN0070028