At least 113 people have been killed and hundreds more are missing after a landslide struck the hilly Wayanad district of Kerala state on Tuesday, a local government spokesman confirmed. Torrential rains on Monday sent torrents of mud, water and rocks crashing down around midnight, destroying everything in their path. Most of the victims are tea plantation workers in the area and their families living nearby in makeshift shelters.
The Indian Armed Forces have deployed around 200 Defence Security Corps personnel and a medical team to assist with rescue efforts as emergency services fear dozens of people are trapped under the mud. Air Force helicopters have also been sent in, according to the report. Indian Express.
The worst affected towns are Mundakkai, Choralmala, Attamala and Noolpuzha. Many roads have collapsed and even bridges and viaducts have been washed away by the water, according to the Minister of Health, Veena George. Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has expressed his concern about the incident and has announced that the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) will allocate 200,000 rupees (about 2,200 euros) for the families of each deceased.
“I am saddened by the landslides in some parts of Wayanad. My thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones and my prayers are with the injured,” Modi said on social media.
Local television footage shows rescue teams making their way through uprooted trees and crushed tin structures. The muddy water is hampering the search for the dead and survivors, as it is also dragging the personnel who have been sent to the scene. One man was trapped in mud up to his chest for hours, according to one of the Indian channels. He was unable to free himself until rescuers finally reached him.
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The bridge linking the affected area to the nearest town, Chooralmala, was destroyed, prompting the deployment of Army engineers to rebuild it. “A small team has managed to cross the river and reach [al lugar] But we will need to send many more to provide relief and begin rescue operations,” said Kerala Chief Secretary V. Venu, adding that there were still people missing.
Nearly 350 families were living in the affected area, mostly workers in the tea and cardamom plantations in the area. In the first few hours, 250 people were rescued, state officials said. Although the area is a popular tourist destination, local residents were the worst affected as all tourist excursions had been suspended since Monday due to forecasts of rain. The weather office had warned of heavy rainfall in north and central Kerala, which is expected to continue on Tuesday.
Tuesday’s landslide is the worst natural disaster in the state of Kerala since 2018, when heavy flooding killed nearly 400 people. “We fear that the gravity of this tragedy will be much greater,” state minister MB Rajesh told news agency ANI.
Rashid Padikkalparamban, a resident involved in the rescue efforts, told Asianet that there were at least three landslides in the area starting at midnight, which washed away the bridge connecting Mundakkai farms with Chooralmala. “Many people working in the farms and staying in makeshift tents inside are feared to be trapped or missing,” he said.
Padikkalparamban, along with 100 others from his area, moved to the nearby Tree Valley resort, which rescue teams had not yet been able to reach.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, who won a Wayanad seat in the recent general election and resigned from it because he was also elected from his family stronghold in the north, said he had spoken to the state’s chief minister to ensure coordination with all agencies. “The devastation taking place in Wayanad is heartbreaking,” he wrote in a post on social media site X. “I have urged the Union government to provide all possible support.”
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