Death toll in Wayanad landslides crosses 120; many feared missing, trapped

Kozhikode: Kerala experienced its "worst-ever" natural disaster in the hilly Wayanad district early on Tuesday as a series of devastating landslides, amid heavy rain, left at least 120 people dead, 98 others reported missing while around 160 people were being treated in a few hospitals in the affected district even as rescue operations continue to locate the missing and evacuate those marooned, officials said.

The worst-affected areas include Churalpara, Velarimala, Mundakayil and Pothukalu and the locals from these areas who managed to escape are deeply shattered as hundreds of homes have been totally destroyed.

Tragic stories are coming out in large numbers from people who have lost their near and dear ones. A man broke out in tears as he said after the landslide occurred, he could only watch helplessly as his mother and his sister were washed away as he clung to a window for safety.

A woman said: "I have no idea of my sister and three children of hers. Till last night we were all together and now I have no clue where they are."

"There are hundreds of people living at Mundakayil where I have been living for the past 24 years and I am deeply saddened as in this hospital, there is no one from my area where I live," said a deeply upset Kunjumohammed, lamenting that he has lost his house and so has his daughter

"I hail from the Pothukalu area and this is going to be the worst-ever tragedy that Wayanad has witnessed. None has a clue of the number of lives that will be lost as the entire place looks ravaged by the landslide,” said a local who was in tears as he searched for his immediate family members at the hospital.

"It’s a tragedy which one cannot ever think about. Just imagine these people, including children, went to sleep last night and the tragedy struck. Many were swept away by nature’s fury. In Malappuram district, 16 bodies were found floating in the Chaliyar river. Dismembered body parts have also been taken out from the river. A team led by a Lt Colonel has helped people trapped in the Mundakayil market area were rescued using a ropeway which the Army set up," Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

"The first landslide occurred at 2 a.m. and then at 4.10 a.m. The road connecting Mundakayil to Churalpara has been washed away. The river which was flowing in the affected area has branched out and it now flows in two directions," he added.

The Chief Minister said that he had received calls from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K.Stalin, and West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose, and all pledged their full support for the state. Stalin has deployed a team from the state, led by two IAS officers, comprising disaster relief personnel and medical staff, to help in the rescue operations.

Vijayan said after hearing of the tragedy, contributions to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund have started to pour in.

After addressing the media in the evening, the Chief Minister issued an advisory asking people not to travel to the disaster site as it will become difficult for the rescue team to go forward in their work. He also has informed that those who wish to come to help the suffering should get in touch with the district authorities who are coordinating the relief operations and depending on their request help should be provided. In the affected areas, 45 relief camps have been opened and there are over 3,600 people in these camps.

Of the 120 dead, only 48 bodies have been identified, leaving distraught relatives who have lost their near and dear ones running to various places trying to locate the missing people.

Even though Chief Minister Vijayan expressed doubts that the rescue operations can continue after dusk, the rescue teams comprising all three defence forces, the NDRF, police, fire force and a large number of volunteers are continuing their rescue operations trying to bring out people holed up at marooned places.

Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan, who reached the affected area, requested Vijayan to ensure that the government issue a directive to avoid post-mortem of the deceased so as to avoid more pain to the survivors.

Meanwhile, five cabinet ministers of the Vijayan government are in Wayanad overseeing the rescue and relief operations, while the state government has declared two days of mourning.

Prime Minister Modi has deputed Union Minister of State for Fisheries George Kurian to Wayanad to coordinate the rescue operations.

The matter was discussed in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing Budget session and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who was earlier the MP from Wayanad, called for a swift rescue operation and also demanded enhanced compensation for the victims. He also demanded that the mapping of landslide-prone areas in many areas of Wayanad and Western Ghats be done and an action plan be readied by the Centre to address the "growing frequency of natural calamities in the fragile region".