CHENNAI: Responding to the news item ‘Flood toll feared to cross 150 in Thoothukudi district’ carried by DT Next on Friday, Thoothukudi Collector G Lakshmipathi in his rebuttal said, the news item was carried out without giving an opportunity to the Thoothukudi administration to register a response.

“The district administration was fully prepared to tackle the floods and an initial warning was issued on December 17 advising people to shift from low-lying areas and had issued helpline numbers for emergency purposes,” the rebuttal letter read.

“There is no missing, non-traceable, and non-contactable complaints in Thoothukudi’s Muthammal Colony that is still unresolved. As on date, two deaths have been reported in the Muthammal Colony area. In this regard, the news item carried has no truth or merit in it. This kind of unsubstantiated news items in the midst of unprecedented natural disaster will cause unnecessary panic and vitiate the rehabilitation and relief measures being undertaken at this moment,” it noted.

The Collector also clarified that around 30 unidentified bodies are found in Muthammal Colony is a blatant lie and might lead to unrest at this crucial time.

“At a time when government and volunteers are working overtime to restore normalcy, this report is misleading and motivated. This inflammatory, panic driven reporting will cause more harm than good,” the Collector said. The error is regretted to our readers.