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The death toll due to the landslide in Wayanad district of Kerala may cross 300. The state government said on Thursday that all the survivors in the landslide-affected villages have been rescued, now no one is left alive there. The death toll in this accident has increased to 177 on Thursday, while more than 170 people are still missing. Among the dead are 81 men, 70 women and other children. So far only 98 bodies have been identified.
According to the ‘Indian Express’, after a review meeting in Kalpetta, Wayanad, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the media that all the survivors have been rescued in the last three days. He said, “It is believed that no one is left in Mundakkai, Choorlamalla and Attamala villages. Rescuers are checking whether any person is trapped individually or not. Now only the bodies are left to be recovered.” Chief Minister Vijayan said that 29 school children are missing from two schools in the area – Government Lower Primary School, Mundakkai and Government Higher Secondary School, Choorlamalla.
The district administration said that the death toll is expected to rise further after the rescue workers clear the debris. The rescue team is facing many challenges due to the landslide, the roads and bridges have been destroyed and there is a lack of heavy equipment. The rescue team personnel are facing difficulties in removing the mud and huge uprooted trees. Houses and other buildings have been completely destroyed due to the falling of trees. State Revenue Minister K. Rajan, who is coordinating the rescue efforts in the disaster affected area, said that more than 1,600 rescue workers including Army, Navy, (National Disaster Response Force) NDRF and Police are engaged in rescue operations in the landslide affected area.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, among other politicians, met the displaced people and expressed their solidarity with them. “The first priority is to rescue the victims of the Wayanad tragedy,” Vijayan said after the all-party meeting. He said the rescue operation, being carried out with the coordinated efforts of various forces, elected representatives, officials and voluntary organisations and local people, will continue for a few more days. Addressing reporters, he said the search operation in the disaster-hit area and the river to recover the bodies of the missing people will continue. Vijayan said after the completion of the temporary bridge (Bailey Bridge) being built by the Army between Choorlamala and Mundakkai, the equipment required for rescue operations will be able to be transported to the disaster-hit areas.
