India landslide tragedy: Death toll climbs to 143
Published: 31 Jul 2024, 09: 29
Relief personnel conduct a search and rescue operation at a site following landslides in Wayanad on 30 July, 2024. Landslides in India triggered by pounding monsoon rains struck tea plantations and killed at least 93 people on 30 July, with at least 250 others rescued from mud and debris, officials saidAFP
The death toll in the Wayanad landslide tragedy climbed to 143 on Wednesday, with several injured and trapped, according to the State Health Department.
Relief and rescue operations are underway in Wayanad’s Chooralmala after a landslide broke out yesterday.
The massive landslide wreaked havoc in the region as houses and roads were damaged, trees uprooted and water bodies swelled, hindering rescue operations.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the national flag is at half-mast at the Kerala Legislative Assembly as a two-day mourning period is observed in the state following the Wayanad landslide that claimed 143 lives.
On Tuesday, Union Minister George Kurian reached Wayanad to take stock of ongoing relief operations, where he interacted with senior officials of the NDRF, CRPF and Army officials. He also visited a relief camp at Kalpetta at 11:00 pm.
“Reached Wayanad hit by a massive landslide and took stock of relief ops. Interacted with senior officials of NDRF, CRPF and Army officials. Visited a relief camp at Kalpetta at 11 pm,” Kurian wrote in a post on X.
NDRF Commander Akhilesh Kumar has said “We rescued injured victims from Mundakkai village yesterday. We fear victims might be trapped in collapsed buildings... Till 10 pm last night, we rescued 70 people, after which we had to stop because of bad weather and rain... Since many teams are working, we cannot give an exact number of deaths, because we only know about the dead bodies our team has recovered... People have been given shelter in a resort and a mosque on the other side of the river. Since rainfall is going on, there are chances of another landslide.”
Meanwhile, in reports just coming in, Kerala health Minister Veena George’s vehicle met with a minor accident near Manjeri in Malappuram district. She was travelling to Wayanad. No major injuries were reported to either the health minister or her staff. The Health Minister is being treated at Manjeri Medical College.
Relief personnel carry the body of a victim, during a search and rescue operation at a site following landslides in Wayanad on 30 July, 2024AFP
Earlier, in response to the landslide in Wayanad, Veena George visited the Health Department Directorate to assess the ongoing arrangements. She provided a detailed overview of the situation and instructed for precise tracking of available hospital beds in the affected areas, as per the Kerala Health Minister’s Office.
Minister George also recommended setting up temporary hospitals if necessary and emphasised the need to evaluate the mortuary systems at existing hospitals, including the utilization of mobile mortuaries.
She also reviewed the operations of the control room, which will function 24/7 to assist both health workers and the public, Kerala Health Minister’s Office.
On Tuesday morning, two massive landslides that washed away the Mundakkai and Chooramala areas of Vellarimala village took place under Meppadi Panchayat in Wayanad.
The landslides destroyed several houses, uprooted trees and made water bodies swell, hampering the rescue work.
Meanwhile, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), “Heavy to very heavy rainfall is very likely to occur at isolated places in Kerala on 31 July and 1 August.”‘
The weather department has predicted heavy rainfall for 2 August. Additionally, it said, “Strong surface winds with speeds reaching 30-40 gusting to 50 kmph are likely to prevail occasionally over Kerala on 30 and 31 July.”
The first landslide occurred at 2:00 am on 30 July, followed by another at 4:10 am, causing immense damage to homes and livelihoods. Many areas, including Meppadi, Mundakkai and Chooralmala, have been isolated, and roads have been washed away. The Vellarmala GVH School was completely buried.
Late on Tuesday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan held a high-level meeting to expedite the rescue operations at the landslide-affected Chooralmala in Wayanad. The meeting was held at the Kerala SDMA office and included discussions on enhancing operations through collaboration with various central agencies & forces.
Rescuers help residents to move to a safer place, at a landslide site after multiple landslides in the hills, in Wayanad, in the southern state of Kerala, India, 30 July 2024.Reuters
Landslides swept through tea estates in southern India's Kerala state on Tuesday, killing at least 44 people as hillsides collapsed after heavy rain and sent rivers of mud and water on homes of workers and villagers.
Television pictures showed relief personnel making their way through rocks and uprooted trees as muddy water gushed through, with many houses destroyed. One man was seen struggling to free himself after being stuck in chest-high mud for hours, as rescue workers were not able to reach him despite multiple efforts.
The hillsides gave way after midnight as workers and their families slept in the Wayanad district of Kerala, a state renowned as one of India's most popular tourist destinations.
It is the worst disaster there since 2018 when heavy floods killed almost 400 people.
State cabinet minister M B Rajesh told ANI news agency that at least 44 people were killed and 250 had been shifted to temporary shelters, but rescue efforts were hampered due to the collapse of a bridge. Also, more rain was predicted through the day.
"We fear the gravity of this tragedy is much more. Rescue operations are being carried out by various agencies on a war footing," Rajesh said.
Nearly 350 families lived in the affected region, mostly tea and cardamom estates, a source at the district collector's office told Reuters.
Army engineers were roped in to help build an alternate bridge after the one that linked the affected area to the nearest town of Chooralmala was destroyed, the Kerala chief minister's office said in a statement.
Visuals from ANI, in which Reuters has a minority stake, showed workers continuing relief work amid uprooted trees and flattened tin structures as huge boulders lay strewn at the site with muddy water gushing through.
Rashid Padikkalparamban, a resident involved in the relief efforts, said there were at least three landslides in the area starting around midnight, which washed away the bridge connecting the Mundakkai estates to Chooralmala.
"Many people who were working in the estates and staying in makeshift tents inside are feared trapped or missing," he said.
Rescue operations were hampered as the area was not reachable by road because of the bridge collapse, Mohsen Shahedi, a senior National Disaster Response Force officer told Reuters.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, who won the recently-contested general election from Wayanad, but resigned as he was also elected from his family bastion in the north, said he had spoken to the state chief minister to ensure coordination with all agencies.
"The devastation unfolding in Wayanad is heartbreaking," he said in a message on X. "I have urged the union government to extend all possible support"
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