Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said the rescue mission in the landslide-hit areas is in its final stages…reports Asian Lite News
Five days on, the search and rescue personnel continued their mission, looking for people stranded amid huge piles of debris and collapsed buildings following the devastating landslides that shook Wayanad. Even as 206 people are still missing, the chances of finding more survivors seem to be remote with the rescue operations entering the final phase.
On Saturday, search teams recovered four bodies from Chooralmala and Mundakkai villages. Three bodies and 13 body parts were found in Chaliyar river at Munderi in Malappuram on the day. Even as official records show the number of deceased as 218, the toll in the landslides is estimated to have crossed 300.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said the rescue mission in the landslide-hit areas is in its final stages. Stating that 206 people are still missing, Pinarayi said the authorities and relatives of the victims are finding it difficult to identify the bodies and body parts recovered from the Chaliyar river.
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On Saturday, the Indian Air Force deployed helicopters for aerial sorties to find survivors and people stranded in the affected areas. They airlifted two rescue workers stranded at Soochippara waterfalls.
The Army on Saturday brought in one Xaver Radar and four Recco Radars, along with operators, from Delhi to identify human presence under the debris. The move followed a request from the state government. The defence forces and other rescue personnel conducted search at six locations on the day. However, fatigue seemed to be catching up with the volunteers involved in the rescue operations.
Meanwhile, the district administration brought in 37 excavators, which were used to dig up sand on the river bed. As many as 11 trained sniffer dogs of the Army, Kerala Police and Tamil Nadu Fire Force are also helping in identifying the possible presence of bodies under the debris.
Almost all locations along the 12-km stretch of the river from Punjirimattom to Chooralmala have been searched. The rescue teams are of the opinion that the chances of more recoveries are grim. The search is now concentrated on the river bed, and the excavators were found digging deep at Punjirimattom, Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Vellarimala village office area and Vellarmala vocational HSS area. It seems the search may be completed in a couple of days.
Volunteers and relatives of those missing in landslides wait outside the family health centre at Meppadi, where the bodies of the deceased are brought to
“There is nothing left, only the river flows” says Thankachan, Landslide survivor
The Army and Fire and Rescue Services personnel conducted extensive search under the trees that piled up behind the Vellarimala village office, where the river takes a winding curve, over the past two days. As many as 56 bodies were recovered from the area so far.
“My house which was located on the banks of the river at Vellarimala was completely submerged. As my wife is a heart patient, I had sent her to a relative’s house on Monday. I was staying with my grandson in the house. In the evening, neighbours said all people are shifting from the area as the the water level in the river was rising. Water had entered our house in the 2018 floods,” said Beerankutty, an elderly resident of Vellarimala.
“Around 8pm, I went to my daughter’s house at Thannilodu. At 2am on Tuesday, my friends at Chooralmala informed me that the house has been submerged. I came to the area in the evening, but was shocked to find that huge trees had piled up over the house,” he said. Actor Mohanlal, who is a Lieutenant Colonel of the 122 Infantry Battalion which is involved in the search operations, visited the affected areas on Saturday. He congratulated the forces for their dedicated work. He visited Punjirimattom, Mundakkai and Chooralmala and interacted with the rescue teams. He said the Viswa Shanti Foundation launched in the name of his parents will donate `3 crore for the renovation of Mundakkai LP School.
Dismissing rumours that the rescue operation is slowing down, Fire and Rescue Services regional fire officer Renjith said the teams are continuing their search at 13 locations. “The fire station in Kalpetta got information about the landslide at 1.30am on Tuesday, and two teams from Kalpetta and Sultan Bathery rushed to the spot immediately. Later, more teams from Kozhikode joined. On Tuesday morning, we used extension ladders to build a temporary bridge across the river and rescued 400 people stranded in Mundakkai. We also used rope rescue technique to save 50 others,” he said, detailing their efforts.
The rescue workers said the arrival of 11 sniffer digs have helped identify bodies caught under the debris. The dogs identified 15 bodies at Mundakkai alone. From Sunday, the authorities are planning to search for bodies under the huge sand mounds formed in the river.
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