October 25: Kerala faces a further spell of intense rain, with Malappuram, Kozhikode and Wayanad listed under a red alert in the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority’s district bulletin issued at 1 pm on Sunday. The India Meteorological Department’s wider outlook also flags extremely heavy rain on October 25–26. These are forecasts and preparedness warnings, not confirmation that every location has flooded.
Key highlights
- KSDMA’s October 25 afternoon notice places three northern districts under a red warning for Sunday.
- Several other districts have orange or yellow alerts; the colours and locations must be read against the correct date.
- IMD’s subdivision outlook continues the heavy-rain risk into October 27.
- A low-pressure area near the Kerala coast forms part of the weather situation described in IMD’s sea-area bulletin.
District alerts: use the latest dated notice
The following selection reproduces the red and orange categories in KSDMA’s 1 pm October 25 notice. It is not a list of confirmed damage or school closures. The state authority says warnings may change with later IMD forecasts.
| Date | Alert | Districts |
|---|---|---|
| October 25 | Red | Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad |
| October 25 | Orange | Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Kannur |
| October 26 | Orange | Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Palakkad, Malappuram |
An older screenshot may show a different distribution. Before using a warning to decide on a journey, compare the issue time, forecast date and destination. A warning for one day should not automatically be carried over to the next.
What the broader weather forecast says
IMD’s Kerala subdivision page, in the October 24 bulletin reviewed for this report, lists extremely heavy rain with thunderstorm and lightning risks for October 25 and 26, followed by heavy rain on October 27. It lists no warning for the subsequent dates shown. A later bulletin can revise that outlook; “no warning” on an earlier forecast is not a permanent all-clear.
The subdivision and district products answer different questions. The first describes the wider weather risk over Kerala; the second identifies the local alert distribution for particular dates. They should be used together rather than treating a state-level phrase as a red alert for every district.
A forecast also differs from a rain-gauge observation. The former describes what may happen during a future period, while the latter records what has already fallen at a particular station. Neither alone establishes the condition of every road, bridge or neighbourhood.
Low pressure near the Kerala coast
IMD’s October 25 sea-area bulletin locates a low-pressure area over the southeast Arabian Sea and adjoining Kerala coast at 8.30 am IST. It describes an associated cyclonic circulation extending to 3.1 kilometres above mean sea level, with a trough towards north coastal Tamil Nadu across Kerala.
This identifies the weather system being monitored. It does not, by itself, establish a named cyclone, a landfall time or a district-wide evacuation. Those would require their own official advisories. The bulletin’s validity period must also be respected when checking conditions later.
Precautions and travel decisions
KSDMA advises people in vulnerable hill areas to prepare to move safely during daylight, avoid entering rivers and other water bodies, and postpone non-essential travel to waterfalls and hill destinations while warnings remain. It also cautions against night travel in hilly terrain and urges attention to electrical hazards in waterlogged areas.
For an essential trip, the practical question is whether the specific route and destination remain accessible. Check local authority notices and the transport operator before leaving. A rainfall alert alone does not announce the cancellation of every train, bus or flight, and this report makes no such claim.
What to watch
The next useful information will be a revised district bulletin, local access restrictions and verified observations of rainfall or damage. This article does not attach an unconfirmed casualty figure to a forecast. Readers should return to the dated official products below as the weather develops.
File photo: People crossing a bridge during rain in Kerala, September 20, 2009. Photo: Dhruvaraj S / Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized; not October 2026 conditions. Photo source; CC BY 2.0.
Sources
- KSDMA: District rain alerts and precautions, October 25, 1 pm
- IMD: Kerala subdivision warnings
- IMD: Sea-area bulletin, October 25
The National Desk covers India's politics, governance, security and public-interest news. Stories are checked against at least two credible sources before publication.
