Kerala limps to normalcy, rain in parts of Karnataka, toll rises to 170
Thiruvananthapuram/Bengaluru, Aug 15: With the rains abating in parts of Kerala, water receded in many low-lying areas of the flood-hit State on Thursday while in Karnataka there was widespread rain in coastal and Malnad areas, as the toll rose to 170 with 48 still missing in the two states.
Over five lakh people have been housed in around 2,000 relief camps in the two states.
Bringing cheer to rain-battered people and authorities engaged in relief and rescue operations, there was no 'red alert' warning in any of the 14 districts of Kerala as the intensity of rains decreased and the state began to return to normalcy.
As per the latest government update, 108 people have died in floods and landslides triggered by the second spell of monsoon since August 8, while 34 people are missing.
The flood situation has improved considerably in Karnataka, where the toll has gone up to 62 with the recovery of one more body, according to officials.
While 14 persons are still classified as missing, nearly seven lakh people have been evacuated till date.
"Flood situation has improved considerably, people in relief camps have started returning to their homes," an official release said on Thursday.
In Kerala, search operations continued at Kavalappara in Malappuram and Puthumala in Wayanad, where a series of landslides had wiped out two villages last week, to trace those who were feared to have been buried alive.
It was comparatively a sunny day at Puthumala, where earth-movers and sniffer dogs were engaged in tracing the missing people.
Drones were engaged in search operations at Kavalappara.
An 'orange alert' (isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall) was sounded in northern districts of Kannur and Kasaragod on Thursday while 'yellow alert' (heavy rainfall) has been issued in Idukki, Kannur and Kasaragod for Friday, IMD authorities said.
According to officials, though people have started shifting to their homes in many places, there are 1,82,600 people still sheltered in 1,029 relief camps.
Northern Malappuram district accounted for most deaths with toll there rising to 45 on Thursday and 26 people still missing, followed by Kozhikode (17) and Wayanad (12 deaths, 7 missing), it said.
One person is reported missing in Kottayam.
As per a government update, 11,901 houses have been partially damaged and 1,115 fully damaged.
The state government has announced a package of flood compensation with an immediate financial aid of up to Rs 10,000 each to all calamity-hit families.
Showcasing a rare model of humanism, a mosque in north Kerala has offered its prayer hall to perform autopsy of the people who were killed in a massive landslide at a nearby village last week.
In Karnataka, joint rescue teams comprising Fire and Emergency, SDRF, NDRF and Army have evacuated 6.97 lakh people as on Thursday.
There was isolated and scattered rain in North interior Karnataka while coastal and Malnad regions experienced widespread rain, officials said.
As many as 943 relief camps are operational, where clean drinking water, food and other relief materials are being provided to 3,57,243 people housed in them.
According to the government, 103 taluks in 22 districts have been affected by floods and incessant rains in the past few days, resulting in loss of agriculture and horticulture crops on 5.35 lakh hectares and damaging 71,234 houses.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
