Tuesday’s catastrophic landslides in Kerala’s Wayanad region left high-range communities littered with broken branches of uprooted trees, overflowing water bodies, and destroyed houses.
The hillsides gave way after midnight following torrential rainfall on Monday in the Wayanad district of Kerala, a state renowned as one of India’s most popular tourist destinations.
Over 80 people are dead and hundreds of more are feared to be trapped. Most of the victims were estate workers and their families who were asleep at the time in makeshift tents.
Despite the massive rescue effort, several times it has been difficult for the rescuers to get to some of the hardest-hit communities that have been shut off by the landslides.
Here’s a detailed look into the rescue operation.
NDRF, drones, and dog squad onsite
Wayanad district Collector Meghasree DR said disaster relief work is progressing in affected areas and rescue operations are being carried out by the NDRF, Fire force, police, and the Forest, Revenue and Local Self-government departments.
State Revenue Minister K Rajan said one team of NDRF is working to clear the debris and create access as they progress towards Mundakkai. Three more NDRF teams from Kollam, Arakkonam, and Bengaluru are also on their way, he said.
Rescue teams have saved 250 people from the landslide-affected areas in Wayanad and are now nearing the most difficult-to-reach locations. According to district authorities, several families have been moved to the various camps or homes of their relatives in the wake of the landslides.
“Mundakkai is in the foothills of a nearby mountain. The issue is that the area was totally cut off due to the destruction of a bridge. Now efforts are on to make a temporary bridge to facilitate the crossing of the rescue team,” Rajan said, according to PTI.
Television visuals showed relief personnel working amid uprooted trees and flattened tin structures as boulders lay strewn at the site with muddy water gushing through. One man was stuck in chest-high mud for hours, as television showed, struggling to free himself until rescue workers finally reached him.
The office also stated that earth excavators are needed to advance the rescue operations.
As the emergency services race against time to reach trapped and injured survivors of the massive tragedy, their rescue efforts are hindered due to blocked roads, a collapsed bridge, unstable terrain and bad weather.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarai Vijayan held a high-level evaluation meeting and visited the State Disaster Management Authority office in the state capital to assess the situation.
According to News18, he has ordered the deployment of police drones and the dog squad to ramp up the search and rescue.
Also read: Why do landslips occur more frequently during the rains?
Army’s Engineering Group, Navy, Air Force join the rescue efforts
The Army’s Madras Engineering Group (MEG) was 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 chief minister’s office said in a statement.
The engineering department will deploy alternative systems to manage the situation. This decision follows discussions between the Revenue Secretary and Major General VT Mathew, who oversees the Kerala-Karnataka Army operations.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to Army Chief and took stock of the situation.
The Indian Army has mobilised four columns, including two columns from the 122 Infantry Battalion (Territorial Army) and two ex the DSC Centre, Kannur.
The Army has deployed 225 personnel, including medical personnel for the search and rescue operation.
Indian Air Force has deployed two choppers – a Mi-17 and one ALH Dhruv – for the rescue operation. The choppers have been sent from the Sulur air base in Coimbatore from Tamil Nadu.
Notably, a team of Navy personnel from the Ezhimala Naval Base in Kannur are also assisting in the rescue and relief operation. A team of 30 specialist swimmers from the Indian Navy have also been deployed, according to the Defence PRO.
Also read: What makes Kerala so vulnerable to such disasters?
Medical teams, call centres, and a special control room set up
Medical teams and ambulances are currently present on the site and food and clothing are also arranged.
A shelter camp has been set up at Bathery St Mary’s SKMJ School in Kalpetta, according to the report.
Police and the Health department have started multiple call centres and 24-hour control rooms to assist both health workers and the public.
George, who visited the Health Department Directorate to assess the ongoing arrangements, instructed for precise tracking of available hospital beds in the affected areas. News18 reported that she has also recommended setting up temporary hospitals if necessary.
According to The Indian Express, Kerala Health Minister Veena George assured, “The Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is himself monitoring the entire situation in the state and he is giving instructions. We have sent more medicines to Wayanad.”
Five ministers coordinate immediate response measures
CM Vijayan also announced, “A delegation of five ministers has been assigned in Wayanad to address the aftermath of the recent landslide and oversee ongoing relief efforts. Forest Minister AK Saseendran has already reached the affected area to assess the damage and coordinate immediate response measures.”
He also assured Minister Ramachandran Kadannappalli expected to arrive shortly to join the efforts on the ground.
Additionally, the Ministers of Revenue, Public Works, and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Departments are travelling by air from Thiruvananthapuram and will be arriving soon, he added.
Tamil Nadu sends rescue team
Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin offered his condolences to the deceased in landslides on a phone call with Kerala CM Vijayan.
He is sending a rescue team headed by two IAS cadres to assist the Kerala administration and has released Rs 5 crore from the TN CM’s General Fund for relief efforts in Kerala, as per News18.
Stalin is also sending 20 firefighters from the Fire Rescue Department, led by its Joint Director, 20 personnel from the State Disaster Management Authority and a medical team of 10 doctors and nurses to Kerala today.
Catch all live updates from the Wayanad landslides
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Death toll rises
The latest death toll from the Wayanad landslide tragedy at the time of writing this report stands at 80.
Earlier, District Collector Meghasree confirmed 36 deaths in Chooralmala. Additionally, nine bodies swept away by the Chaliyar River were recovered in Malappuram.
The bodies of the deceased are being taken to various hospitals for identification and autopsy.
“Nearly 70 people have been admitted to various hospitals in Kozhikode; at least 12 bodies are there in the hospitals,” Rajan added.
The tragedy
Heavy rains triggered a series of massive landslides in the hilly areas of Kerala’s Wayanad district early on Tuesday. The landslides, which occurred between 2 am and 4 am on Tuesday, primarily affected the regions of Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala, and Noolpuzha villages.
Picturesque hamlets known for their beauty until Monday are now a picture of gloom after landslides hit the areas, cutting them off from other places. Vehicles washed away in floodwaters could be seen stuck in tree trunks and submerged here and there in many places. Swollen water bodies changed their course and flowed through inhabited areas, resulting in more destruction.
Nearly 350 families lived in the affected region, mostly tea and cardamom estates, and 250 people had been rescued so far, state officials said, as per Reuters. Many others are missing.
Mundakkai has been totally cut off by the devastating landslides that hit Wayanad district. The extent of the damage has not yet been determined, said Rajan, as per PTI.
There were reports of roughly 150 individuals who were stuck at the Tree Valley Resort in Meppadi. For safety amid the torrential rains of previous night, the resort had admitted a few locals. They are experiencing a food shortage as per Indian Express.
At least 40 houses have had debris fall on top of them due to landslides that have occurred in the vicinity, according to the resort.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed anguish over the loss of lives in landslides in Kerala’s Wayanad district and assured Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of all possible help from the Centre to deal with the crisis.
The prime minister has announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the PMNRF for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured.
Tuesday’s landslides are the worst disaster there since 2018, when heavy floods killed almost 400 people.
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.”
With inputs from agencies
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Wayanad landslides: From Army to dog squad, how rescue operations are in full swing
