Cyclone Ockhi death toll rises to 39 in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: The toll in the cyclone rose to 39 in the state with three more bodies being recovered on Thursday, according to official sources. The state control room here said two bodies were recovered in Thiruvananthapuram and one in Kollam district. Another body was found in Thrissur,  but was yet to be included in the official list. But unofficial sources said  that one body was found by the Marine Enforcement Wing at Azheekal near Kayamkulam while the Coast Guard recovered two, one each from Alappuzha and Kochi. Another body was found near Chettuva in Thrissur.

While the government maintained that 97 fishermen were still missing, Latin Catholic Church authorities said the total number of people missing was very high. Parish priest M.R. John said 247 fishermen were missing of whom 101 had left in small boats. Meanwhile, the Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force carried out search operations for the eighth consecutive day on Thursday. The Navy rescued 15 fishermen off Kozhikode.