Wayanad, 31 July

The devastating series of landslides in Kerala's Wayanad district has claimed the lives of at least 132 people and injured over 200, with the toll expected to rise as rescuers search through the debris, official sources said on Wednesday.

Over 180 people are missing and more than 300 houses were completely destroyed in the landslides that hit the Mundakkai and Chooralmala areas of the district, they said. Postmortem of 123 bodies have been completed and 75 of them identified.

The recovered bodies are being kept at the Meppadi Family Health Centre and the Nilambur Government Hospital, an official statement said here.

Rescue teams comprising the Army, Navy and NDRF are collectively looking for survivors by unearthing the debris and breaking into the remains of houses destroyed or covered up with mud in the landslides.

According to a Defence statement, army units deployed in the area rescued around 1,000 people from the affected areas till Tuesday night. Additionally, the Air Force is carrying out aerial reconnaissance of the affected areas to coordinate search and rescue operations. The landslides occurred around 2 am and 4.10 am on Tuesday catching people off-guard while they were sleeping, leading to a high number of casualties.

Harrowing scenes of dead bodies in sitting and lying positions inside destroyed houses could be seen as rescue operations resumed in the landslide-devastated Mundakkai hamlet on Wednesday morning. The rescuers could reach many inland areas, which were totally cut off on Wednesday morning only.

According to visuals aired on TV channels, at one place, army personnel could be seen breaking the tin roof of a house that was completely submerged in mud and using ropes to reach inside to retrieve the bodies of those trapped there.

A local man, who went inside one such house, said he saw mud-covered bodies in sitting positions on chairs and lying down on cots. "The deceased persons might be sitting or lying down when the tragedy struck them in the small hours of Tuesday," he said.

Meanwhile, Wayanad district authorities started collecting data to determine the number of people missing following the massive tragedy. A special team at the District Emergency Operation Centre is compiling data on the number of people residing in the area, those found after the landslide, and the number of persons missing, a district administration official told reporters.

The official said data on individuals is being collected by reviewing ration card details and other government documents. Members of several families have reported that their loved ones remain untraced.

The massive Wayanad landslides that levelled houses and buried lives underneath them have also scarred the survivors for life. With their near and dear ones gone and staring at an uncertain future, survivors recount their most traumatic experience ever that unfolded in the wee hours of July 30.

Speaking to PTI, Pranjeesh, a survivor from Mundakkai, said he heard a loud noise and the landslide occurred four times. "Around 12.40 am, the landslide occurred. We heard a huge sound. Three members of my family were lost in the landslide that passed right in front of my house. Now, we are in a camp and safe. We are eight people. My mother's sister and her family were left behind," he said.

Prasanna, from Chooralmala, was in tears when she recounted her experience. The woman witnessed her sister and her family being swept away by the muddy water. "I could only help my father. I carried him and ran towards the forest. I couldn't help my sister. I couldn't save her. Two of the children ran outside and got washed away. I could hear them screaming. Our house got washed away," Prasanna, in her late 40s, recounted the ordeal.

Union Minister George Kurian has said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is closely monitoring the landslide situation in Kerala's Wayanad district, with the central government assuring all possible assistance to the state for the rescue efforts of those affected by the tragedy.

Kurian visited the people affected by the landslide in Wayanad. "The situation is being monitored by the central government at the highest level. The Honourable Prime Minister is monitoring the situation and has deputed me to visit the affected areas.

"Both control rooms of the Ministry of Home Affairs are monitoring the situation 24x7 and providing all possible assistance to the state," he is quoted as saying in a press release here on Wednesday.

The Chief Minister's Office said that the Army will construct a Bailey bridge for rescue operations in Wayanad's Chooralmala. Massive landslides triggered by torrential rains struck Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala, and Noolpuzha hamlets in the early hours of Tuesday, killing several people, including women and children.