Wayanad landslides: Death toll touches 316; rescue operations continue

Death toll in the landslides in Wayanad district of Kerala has climbed to 316 even as rescue operations entered the fourth day on Friday.

According to a report by Malayala Manorama, as many as 298 people are still missing. Twenty-nine children are among those missing.

Forty teams of rescuers began search operations braving rain. The completion of a 190-foot-long Bailey bridge that will help the movement of heavy machinery, including excavators, and ambulances to Mundakkai and Chooralmala hamlets that have been the worst affected will expedite the rescue operations.

The Madras Sappers, with their unwavering spirit, resilience, and exceptional commitment to the relief efforts, completed the 190-foot Bailey Bridge in record time, the Indian Army Southern Command in Pune said in a X post.

The rescue teams, which include personnel from the army, NDRF, DSG, Coast Guard, Navy, and MEG along with three locals and one forest department employee, will conduct search operations in six zones—Attamala and Aaranmala (first), Mundakkai (second), Punchirimattam (third), Vellarimala village (fourth), GVHSS Vellarimala (fifth), and riverbank (sixth).

The eight police stations, along the 40-km stretch of Chaliyar, will join forces with swimming experts in the area to search the river for bodies that may have flown downstream or are trapped along the riverbanks.

More than 1,600 people are involved in the rescue operations. A drone-based radar from Delhi is expected to arrive in the district on Saturday to locate bodies buried in the mud.

Meanwhile, according to the IMD, the intensity of rain in the state has been decreasing.