Wayanad landslide: Death toll crosses 180, eyewitnesses say saw ‘kin get washed away’

The death toll in landslide-affected Wayanad in Kerala rose to over 180 on Wednesday amid intensified rescue operations and setting up of infrastructure, including bridges, by the Indian army, navy and air force teams. At present, more than 200 people are missing and over 3,000 affected persons have been shifted to relief camps from across the worst-affected areas, including Churalpara, Vellarimala, Mundakayil, and Pothukalu.

The News Minute, which has been reporting from ground zero, has spoken to several survivors and eyewitnesses of the three landslides that hit Wayanad in the wee hours of July 30 within a span of four hours. Over 1,000 persons were rescued and 70 dead bodies were recovered on Tuesday. 

‘Saw mother, sister get washed away’; one stuck mid-river for 5 hours 

Around 1:30 am on July 30, when the landslide struck Meppadi, Vijayan’s house was one of the first to be hit. The middle-aged man told TNM, he woke up to a loud sound and a strange smell, with his house shaking.   

His family ran out into the heavy rain amid electric posts falling on the road in pitch darkness. Vijayan and a few others then began to rescue those who were stranded in the neighbourhood and whose wails they heard. Subsequently, all his family members were trapped in a single room and clung to its windows amid lashing rain. While Vijayan and others held on to it for the entire night, his mother and sister got washed away in front of their eyes.    

As Vijayan spoke to TNM, he was still shaken with disbelief at having survived the landslide. He said the images of his mother and sister getting washed away in the rain while he watched helplessly were haunting him. His wife, his father and his sister’s daughter also survived the landslide. 

He told Asianet News that they found the body of his sister, but not his mother was still missing. “I saw my mother lose her hold on the window and slip away, but I thought she would have grabbed something else. We could see nothing in the darkness. But in the morning, I could not find her anywhere.”

Four years ago in the August rains of 2020, Vijayan’s house in Mundakkai was one of the three in the area to be washed away, he said. This was his second escape from a disaster.

A man was stuck mid-river in Mundakkai for five hours before he was rescued from the mud and brought to the river banks by stretcher. With the bridge connecting Mundakkai to the rest of the district swept away, officials said taking him to the hospital in Meppadi will take more time. 

As per reports, he was stuck in waist-deep mud and rocks for over five hours. Videos showed him waving to rescuers as he awaited help. The rescue reportedly took more than two hours. 

Several members of family dead or missing, people flock to hospitals

At the Meppadi community health centre in Wayanad, a beeline of anxious relatives could be seen every time the body of a deceased arrived. Many families had already identified the bodies of several kin and were still waiting for the news of the remaining family members. 

The locals said that many residents of Mundakkai had moved to their relatives’ houses in other parts of the district on July 29, following the heavy rains. The ones who stayed behind in Mundakkai ended up being trapped in the landslide.

Rafeeq, who was searching for his sister and her family at the Family Health Centre in Meppadi, told TNM that he does not know if they are dead or alive. “They are a family of five, including my nephew and niece, and they live in Mundakkai. All of them were trapped in the landslide and I have not been able to get any news since. Yesterday, some bodies from that locality were shifted to the health centre. I am here hoping to find out about them.”

He added that only his niece’s body has been found so far. “My niece’s body has been found, but it is currently in Malappuram district. After being trapped in the landslide, the body was swept away in the Chaliyar river. Efforts are being made to bring it here to Wayanad.” 

Most of the recovered bodies are unidentifiable, covered in mud and dirt from the landslides. They must be cleaned before they can be recognised, for which they are brought to the health centre. 

Basheer, another local, said that he had been looking for 11 members of his family, including his daughter-in-law, his wife’s parents, and her family, and four of them have been found. “They were residents of Mundakkai, near the mosque around the town area, and we are still looking for updates.” 

Kunjaysha, who had relatives in Chooramala, told TNM that six members of her family, including her mother, have been cremated, while the others are missing. “There are no houses there anymore. We don’t know where the rest are. Whether they are dead or alive. It will be helpful if we know about their whereabouts. If they are in camps.”  

‘About 70 houses swept away’ in Mundakkai

Mundakkai resident Kunju Muhammed said, “There is no one left from Mundakkai. I escaped this massive landslide only because I shifted from there around 2 pm last evening along with my children. Some 68-70 houses used to be there in that area. Nobody from there is here. My relatives and friends are missing now.”

Muhammed came to know about the landslide at around 1:45 am on July 30. “I don't know how many people have escaped. Nobody from Mundakkai is here at the hospital. I don't know what happened to the others,” he added. 

Another person at Meppadi Community Health Centre told Asianet News, “My brother-in-law and his wife died. Currently, I am searching for my uncle, aunt, and their children who used to stay on the banks of the Chaliyar river in Mundakkai. We tried to contact them several times but nobody is attending the call.” 

The woman added that her uncle and family were safe when last contacted on the morning of July 29. “But around 3 am they called me and said they were trying to escape and it was flooded there. Their houses were damaged in the 2019 Puthumala landslide as well.” 

The only bridge to Mundakkai across the Chaliyar river was swept away in the landslide, making the area inaccessible. Rescue teams including fire force personnel have reached there using ropes to cross the river. However, adverse weather conditions and strong currents are making rescue efforts difficult.

65 dismembered bodies found in river bank 12 km away

Nearly four hours after devastating landslides hit Mundakkai and Chooralmala in Kerala’s Wayanad, dismembered body parts of those killed in the incident were found several kilometres away on the banks of the Chaliyar River in Pothukallu panchayat in Malappuram district. Chooralmala and Mundakkai, two of the worst affected areas in the multiple landslides, are 93 km away from Pothukallu by road. However, along the river, it is approximately 12 km away.

It was around 6 am on July 30 when the Pothukallu police received a call regarding a body part found on the banks of Chaliyar. By Wednesday, July 31, almost 32 hours after the landslide, 65 bodies, most of them dismembered parts, were found in Pothukallu.

“The villagers were the first to see the body parts and they reported it to the police. Following the alert, police, fire and rescue officials and different rescue workers arrived at the spot and initiated the recovery operation. Currently, around 500 people, including villagers, are conducting the search,” Pothukallu panchayat member Sulaiman Haji told TNM.

On Tuesday, 56 dead bodies were found here, while nine were found on Wednesday. The recovered dead bodies were immediately transported to the Nilambur Government Hospital in ambulances. According to police, procedures including DNA testing to identify the deceased will be conducted at the hospital. 

Pothukallu police sub inspector Mohandas said, “We haven’t found any body with all parts intact. Since they were swept away by water for over 12 km, some of the body parts were bloated and left unrecognisable. We are filing the First Information Reports (FIR) for each body now. 

Currently, the rescue team is conducting a search spanning 10 km along the river from Pothukallu to Kumbalappara.

(With inputs from Korah Abraham and Haritha Manav)

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