Shirur: The search operation for Kozhikode native Arjun and two others, who went missing in a massive landslide at Shirur in Karnataka's Ankola, will resume on Monday. The search operation, which is entering its 14th day, will however not involve any diving into the river due to the high currents. The mission will resume once the water level in Gangavali river reduces.
Meanwhile, the search and rescue team will attempt to remove a sand bar, which formed on the river following the landslide, with the help of a dredging machine. The equipment is expected to arrive from Thrissur in Kerala in two days. Two Assistant Directors and a machine operator from the Agriculture Department in Kerala will visit Shirur on Monday to check if the conditions including type of sand is suited for dredging. The Agro Dredge machine is attached to a Hitachi boat. The machine which belongs to the Agriculture department can anchor at a depth of 18 to 24 feet.
“The truck is trapped in the mire on the riverbed. It has a total weight of almost 25 tonnes, including the wood load. We need to create a cavity above the truck to be push the vehicle upwards with the help of exerted pressure,” Karwar MLA Satish Krishna Sail said on Sunday.
The Kerala government on Sunday urged its Karnataka counterpart to revisit its decision to suspend the search operations in the Gangavali river for a few days to inclement weather. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan wrote to Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, requesting that his government continue the rescue operations to find Arjun. He also expressed his appreciation for the search-and-rescue teams' dedication to the mission.
It was on Sunday afternoon that Uttara Kannada district administration ordered a temporary suspension of the rescue mission citing adverse weather conditions, including a forecast of heavy rain in Shirur for the next 21 days. The search was overseen by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Karnataka State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Karnataka police, Navy and Army. Local underwater search expert Eshwar Malpe and his team of seven divers have been leading the efforts in the Gangavali River since Saturday. However, they withdrew on Sunday after strong currents posed a threat to their safety.
The Uttara Kannada district administration on July 19 confirmed that the truck driven by a Kozhikode native was among the vehicles trapped in the Ankola landslide, three days after the incident. Arjun, a native of Kannadikkal in Kozhikode, went missing while driving the truck loaded with wood from Karnataka to Kerala. Two Karnataka natives are also reported missing. So far, eight bodies were recovered during the 14-day search.
