Massive landslides hit Kerala's Wayanad district

Massive landslides struck various hilly areas near Meppadi in Kerala's Wayanad district early on Tuesday, leaving hundreds of people suspected to be trapped. The death toll as of Wednesday morning is 201 with more than 264 people reportedly injured.

Harrowing scenes of dead bodies in sitting and lying positions inside destroyed houses could be seen as rescue operations resumed in the landslide-devastated Mundakkai hamlet in Kerala's Wayanad district today.

The rescuers could reach many inland areas, which were totally cut off, Wednesday morning only.

Massive landslides triggered by torrential rains struck Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala, and Noolpuzha hamlets in the early hours of Tuesday, killing several people, including women and children.

According to visuals aired on TV channels, at one place, army personnel could be seen breaking the tin roof of a house that was completely submerged in mud and using ropes to reach inside to retrieve the bodies of those trapped there.

A local man, who went inside one such house, said he saw mud-covered bodies in sitting positions on chairs and lying down on cots. 'The deceased persons might be sitting or lying down when the tragedy struck them in the wee hours of Tuesday,' he said.

Fears of mounting fatalities have been sparked by apprehensions that several people may still be trapped under the debris.

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Survivors narrate their stories

Frantic phone calls were made by people desperately pleading for help after being trapped under destroyed houses and piles of debris as landslides rocked the high-range hamlets of Kerala's Wayanad district.

Television channels aired phone conversations of several people crying and requesting someone to come and rescue them as they were either trapped in their houses or had no way to travel as bridges had been washed away and the roads were flooded.

In one such conversation, a woman, apparently a native of Chooralmala town, was heard crying aloud, saying that someone in her house was trapped under the marsh and debris and could not be pulled out. 'Someone, please come and help us. We have lost our house. We don't know whether Nausheen (apparently a family member) is alive. She is trapped in the marsh. Our house is in the town itself...,' the woman could be heard saying.

A man, another native of Chooralmala, said during a phone conversations that the place was still trembling and they didn't know what to do. 'The earth is trembling. There is a huge noise in the place. We have no way to come from Chooralmala,' he said.

Another man, in a phone call, alerted that a large number of people were trapped under mud and battling for life in Mundakkai. 'If someone can come here by vehicle from the Meppadi area, we can save the lives of hundreds of people,' he said.

An elderly man with injuries told a television channel that his wife was missing and he did not know where she was. 'We were sleeping in the house. Suddenly, a loud noise was heard, and huge boulders and trees were seen suddenly falling down on the roof of our house. Flood water entered the premises, destroying the shutters in front of the house,' he said. He also said someone had rescued him and shifted him to hospital, but his wife was missing.

Emotional scenes at Wayanad's health centre

Bodies were kept in a row on the floor of a tiny, congested hospital building in the district, where wailing people were seen desperately searching to find loved ones.

The disturbing scenes were from a local community health centre, which could otherwise accommodate only a few people, in Meppadi village.

Some people broke down at the shock of seeing the cold and injured bodies of their loved ones, while others heaved a sigh of relief that their kin were not among the deceased.

A teary-eyed young woman said five members of her family, including two children, went missing after the landslides. She said she came to the hospital to find out whether they were admitted there after being rescued by someone. 'I don't know where to go or where to search. Our two children are also missing. What will we do?' she said.

A man was seen struggling to hold back tears as his brother was found among the dead. A local anganwadi worker said she was searching for a four-member family, including a 12-year-old girl who was known to her for a long time. 'Some of their relatives called me in the morning and said the entire family was missing and their house had collapsed and was destroyed completely. Unfortunately, I could not find any of them here so far,' she said.

Aboobakar, a physically-challenged person, was also seen moving through the crowded hospital rooms in search of his missing brother and his family. 'Me, my wife, and my son were shifted to my sister's house on Monday as heavy rains continued to lash our place. But my brother and his family, who were living close to our house, continued there, and they are missing now,' he said. He also expressed hope that they would be safe somewhere and that someone might have rescued them.

Man attempts to survive in landslide-hit Wayanad hamlet by clinging on to boulder

In a heart-wrenching scene in the landslide hit Wayanad on Tuesday, a man covered in mud was engaged in a desperate battle for survival by clinging on to a huge boulder in gushing flood water, as helpless locals could only watch his ordeal and urged authorities to swiftly rescue him.

The man, suspected to have been washed away by the flood water, somehow got stuck between huge boulders but was unable to stand or swim to safety due to the thick marsh and strong currents.

The visuals of the hapless man's attempt to survive amidst scattered boulders in the floodwater came from Mundakkai village, where hundreds of people were reportedly trapped following the deadly landslides. The visuals, taken by one of the villagers, were aired by television channels, urging authorities to send rescue teams to the location.

'He is trapped in the area near the local school in Mundakkai. He caught our attention for the first time by 7.30 am. He is still continuing his attempt not to get swept away by the flood waters and trying to stand in the thick marsh,' Raghavan, a block panchayat member who shot the visuals on his mobile phone, said.

Villagers said though they were seeing the man's survival attempts, they could not reach the place or rescue him due to strong currents and marsh.

As the rescue mission continues in various hamlets, people could be seen hugging each other tight so that they are not swept away in the flood waters. People, especially elderly men and women, could also be seen being rescued by placing temporary metal bridges in areas cut off due to massive landslides.

Pic Credit: The New Indian Express

Following the devastating landslide in Wayanad, the Kerala government declared state mourning for two days. An official notification issued by Chief Secretary V Venu had declared official mourning on July 30 and 31. As per protocol, the national flag will be kept at half-mast and all public functions and celebrations will be cancelled.

Read more at: https://www.ndtvprofit.com/nation/wayanad-landslides-death-toll-rises-to-148-imd-issues-orange-alert-for-the-district

Army dogs that can sniff out life from under mud to be deployed in Wayanad

Expertly-trained dogs from the Army's elite canine unit of breeds such as Belgian Malinois, Labradors, and German Shepherds, which can smell human remains and even the faintest of breath buried deep under mud, are on their way to the landslide-ravaged Meppadi in Wayanad.

These dogs have been trained for several years at the prestigious Remount Veterinary Corps Centre (RVC) in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.

Based on a special request from the Chief Minister of Kerala, the Canine Squad of the Army, specially trained for operations in disaster areas, will be flown to Wayanad to sniff out signs of life so that people trapped deep under the mud at the landslide site can be rescued, and also to recover the human remains of those who were not fortunate enough to survive nature's onslaught.

A Defence Ministry PRO said that based on the request from the Kerala Government, the Meerut RVC is sending the canine team with expert handlers to Wayanad. 'These dogs are experts in rescuing people from disaster-struck areas and the canine team will be arriving soon at Wayanad,' the PRO said.

On earlier occasions too, the Army's dogs have helped the authorities dig out bodies from landslide sites at Kavalappara and Puthumala in Kerala. Hundreds of dogs are rigorously trained with high accuracy at the Meerut RVC annually to carry out anti-terrorism operations and narcotics detection, and to provide rescue assistance in disaster-struck locations in the country.

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District authorities in Kerala’s landslide-struck Wayanad on July 31 started collecting data to determine the number of people missing following the massive tragedy, as rescue operations resumed to trace persons suspected of being trapped. Helicopters will be used to airlift injured persons from the affected areas.

Members of several families have reported that their loved ones remain untraced. In Wayanad, 45 relief camps have been established, accommodating 3,069 people. Meanwhile, various rescue agencies resumed their operations early in the morning to trace people suspected to be trapped in the tragedy, which has killed at least 150 people and left 197 injured.

Human misery is everywhere, in different forms.

A few are man-made:war and murders, and a few are because of nature's fury.

They need help now, from central government and from state authorities.

#WayanadDisaster

Nature's fury at it's scariest form.

Originally posted by: Viswasruti

Human misery is everywhere, in different forms.

A few are man-made:war and murders, and a few are because of nature's fury.

They need help now, from central government and from state authorities.

I really didn't wanted to do this

But this and the Delhi ones could have been easily avoided.

These deaths in incidents like this should not have happen.

If the State govt would have came out of their ego and done their work for which they are elected rather than blaming Center for anything.

The Center has given multiple warnings still it was ignored.

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