Wayanad landslides: 12 bodies recovered from Chaliyar; death toll reaches 369
Death toll touched 357, over 200 still missing.
Death toll touched 357, over 200 still missing.
Death toll touched 357, over 200 still missing.
Wayanad: Army personnel and other forces including NDRF, Navy, Kerala police and Kerala forest department resumed the search for the missing people in the landslide-hit areas of Wayanad on Sunday. As per official records, 206 people are still missing from Mundakkai and Chooralmala. Meanwhile, the death toll reached 369 on Sunday after 12 more bodies were recovered from the banks of the Chaliyar River.
Manorama News reported that a total of 1,208 houses were destroyed in the multiple landslides in the hill district. Out of these, 540 houses were in Mundakkai, 600 in Chooralmala and 68 in Attamala. Around 3700 acres of agricultural land swept away in the landslide incurring a crop loss of Rs 21.111 crore. According to the state government, a total of 49 children from the region are missing in the landslide. Some of them were students at Vellarimala GVHSS. School authorities are yet to trace how many of the missing students are from their institution.
Around 1300 from various forces along with cadaver dogs are conducting search operations in six zones of the landslides-hit areas -- Attamala and Aaranmala (first), Mundakkai (second), Punchirimattam (third), Vellarimala village (fourth), GVHSS Vellarimala (fifth), and riverbank (sixth). National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), K-9 Dog Squad, Army, Special Operation Group, Madras Engineering Group, Kerala Police, Kerala Fire Force, Kerala Forest Department, Navy, and Coast Guard are currently carrying out the search operation.
A drone survey will be conducted in the disaster-hit places in the coming days. Old photos of the region will be used during the search to identify the structures that washed away or buried under the debris. In order to trace the missing people, a photography folder and details of the families who filed missing cases will be examined in detail.
On Saturday, 31 earthmovers were taken for the search at Punchirimattam, Mundakkai, Chooralmala, village premises and school road.