Heavy rain and landslides leave 18 dead in southern India

Hindu devotees walk back after performing rituals, past an inundated Shiva temple on the banks of the Periyar River following heavy rains in Kochi, Kerala state, India, Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2021. (AP Photo/R S Iyer)

At least 18 people have died a day after torrential rains swept through villages and flooded roads in the southern Indian state of Kerala.

Officials said rescuers recovered the bodies in two of the worst-hit districts, Kottayam and Idukki, where the heavy downpours triggered massive landslides, according to the Press Trust of India news agency.