Over 90 people are confirmed dead in landslides that hit Kerala’s hilly Wayanad district on Tuesday, authorities said.
Of those killed, four people, including a child, died in the Chooralmala town of the district, while a one-year-old child of a Nepali family died in the Thondernad village, according to the Wayanad district authorities.
The Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala, and Noolpuzha villages were among the areas affected and cut off by the landslides, authorities said.
In a video message, UDF MLA T Siddique said district authorities were drawing up plans to airlift people from the Mundakkai area.
“Currently, we have no complete information about those missing and dead in the landslides. Many areas have been cut off. NDRF personnel are trying to reach those places.” he said.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Tuesday that all government agencies have joined the search and rescue operations in the wake of massive landslides that struck various hilly areas near Meppadi in Kerala’s Wayanad district, leaving hundreds feared to be trapped.
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) has said that NDRF teams have been deployed to the affected area, with an additional NDRF team en route to Wayanad.
Two teams of Kannur Defence Security Corps have also been instructed to move to Wayanad to assist in the rescue efforts, according to a Facebook post by the KSDMA.
The operations will be coordinated, and state ministers will reach the hilly district to lead the rescue activities, Chief Minister Vijayan said in a statement issued by his office.
He added that in the wake of the landslides and other rain-related disasters in Wayanad district, the Health Department – National Health Mission – has opened a control room. Those in need of emergency assistance can contact authorities through these two numbers – 9656938689 and 8086010833 – the statement said.
Locals from the affected areas report that many people are feared to be trapped.
Rescue operations are being hindered by ongoing heavy rainfall.
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