Kerala landslides: Death toll rises to 150, Navy teams arrive in Chooralmala for rescue ops

Wayanad (Kerala) [India], July 31 (ANI) Death toll in landslides in Kerala’s Wayanad district has climbed to 148, the Kerala State Revenue Department said on Tuesday.

However, the Commandant of the Para Regimental Training, Brigadier Arjun Seagan said “150 deaths have been recorded so far.” He said that “around 200 to 250 individuals have been rescued.”

Further, a dog squad has joined the search and rescue operations in Wayanad’s Chooralmala which was hit by a landslide on Tuesday.

Two massive landslides struck the state’s hilly areas in Meppadi panchayat early on July 30 morning with villages Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala and Noolpuzha among the severely affected.

The area which has been witnessing incessant rainfall over the past two weeks faced devastation after the landslide struck, with rivers and their tributaries swelling and changing course, flowing through the villages and wreaking destruction.

Rescue teams from the Army, Navy, Air Force and NDRF are assisting in rescue operations. 60 teams from the Ezhimala Naval Academy arrived in Chooralmala early this morning to assist in rescue operations.

The team, comprising 45 sailors, five officers, six fire guards and a doctor is headed by Lt Commandant Ashirvad, the Kerala Public Relations Department said.

Commandant of the Para Regimental Training, Brigadier Arjun Seagan told ANI that “rescue operations have been ongoing since yesterday morning. Yesterday, due to bad weather conditions, the rescue teams were not able to rescue a lot of people. Around 500 to 600 personnel from the NDRF team, army, state police, forest officials, and volunteers have been carrying out the rescue operations today.”

Brigadier Seagan said efforts were on to rebuild the washed-away bridge and as soon the conditions become better, people will be airlifted out.

“We are trying our best to build the bridge again so that we can move the earth-moving equipment inside and to make the digging process easier. We have been doing the process manually as of now. As soon as the weather conditions become better, we will start airlifting the people,” the army official said.

The Southern Command of the Indian Army posted on its social media site X on Wednesday morning that upto 1,000 people have been rescued so far.

“In a remarkable display of coordinated efforts, #IndianArmy Columns along with #NDRF, State rescue teams, #CoastGuard, #IndianNavy and #IAF, have been relentlessly working to address the crisis. Upto 1,000 personnel rescued so far using a man-made bridge and human effort. Approx 70 dead bodies recovered by Army column,” the post read.

“Two additional Army Columns airlifted from Trivandrum by Indian Air Force Air Craft AN 32 & C 130 landed at Calicut at 10:30 PM last night. These columns commenced their onward journey to #Wayanad at 6:45 AM today, with even an Army Officer on leave volunteering to join the mission”, it read.

While the first landslide was reported to have hit Mundakkai in Mepadi panchayat around 1.30 am, a second landslide hit the area around 4 am on Monday. Due to the torrent of water gushing down from Mundakkai to Chooralmala the river Iruvazhinji got diverted, resulting in flash floods washing away Chooralmala village. Houses were buried, trees uprooted and people swept away in the landslides.

People who were stranded in Mundakkai after the bridge connecting Mundakkai with Chooralmala and Attamala was washed away, were rescued on Tuesday evening after Army constructed a make-shift bridge across the river.

Houses were buried and trees uprooted in the area and bodies were found floating in the Chaliyar river in Pothukal village in Wayanad’s neighbouring district of

Malappuram. The Chaliyar River originates in Chooralmala and flows behind Mundakkai and then goes via the Soochipara Falls to reach Pothukal.

According to reports, bodies of people who were washed ashore and recovered from the banks of dead bodies were recovered from the ghats of Iruttkuthi, Ambittanpotty, Kunippala, Njettikulam, Machikai, Bhoodanam, Vellilamad, Munderi and Panangayam.

The bodies of 75 victims have been identified so far, according to a compilation of official data from the Kerala Revenue Department taking into account data from hospitals in the area. It said that postmortem procedures of 123 dead bodies have been completed and of these bodies of 62 victims have been identified and released to their families so far.

The bodies of 83 victims have been identified so far. Postmortem procedures of 143 dead bodies were also completed. Of these, 32 bodies are kept in Nilambur District Hospital. 25 body parts at Nilambur and the post mortem of all the body parts are completed, it said. Out of the deceased at Nilambur are 19 are male bodies, 11 are female bodies and two small children. At the CHC Meppadi the deceased include 47 male and 44 females.

In Wayanad, several injured were taken to WIMS Hospital in Meppadi, the Government Hospital in Kalpeta, the Taluk Hospital in Vythiri and the Taulk Hospital in Bathery. In Mallapuram, the injured are receiving treatment at Kondotty Taluk Hospital and the Manjery government hospital.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that 45 relief camps have been set up in Wayanad and over 3000 people have been rehabilitated there.