Heavy rains have triggered multiple landslides in the southern Indian state of Kerala, killing at least 109 people and causing rescue efforts for those feared trapped, authorities said.
At least 176 people were injured in floods that hit Kerala’s Wayanad district on Tuesday at the height of the monsoon season, according to Megha Shree DR district governor’s office.
Indian Army, Navy and Air Force personnel and helicopters took part in search and rescue operations on Tuesday as heavy rains flattened villages in the hill country. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s office said “the whole of government agencies” were involved in overseeing and coordinating the rescue effort.
Kerala police civilian officer Amar Kabir said the death toll was expected to rise, and local disaster officials said dozens of people were still missing.
Images and videos circulating on social media showed submerged railway tracks, highways blocked by boulders and wrecked cars trapped by uprooted trees as muddy waters steadily flowed into the town and villages of Wayanad, usually the region’s tourist hub.
“I am saddened by the landslides that occurred in parts of Wayanad. My thoughts are with all those who have lost loved ones and my prayers are with those who were injured,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Twitter.
Ratheef PS, 36, a teacher from Wayanad who is volunteering with the search and rescue effort, told The Washington Post in a phone interview that it was difficult to find the bodies because they had been swept away by floodwaters for 10 miles. He lives close to the flooding and his house is also submerged.
“We have been working since morning to rescue people and retrieve bodies, but it is not easy,” he said.
Ratheef said more than 200 houses had been washed away by the landslide and it was unclear how many people were missing. The area around Wayanad is known for its tea plantations, with many of the workers living in small settlements built on tea-producing hills. “It happened so suddenly that most of the workers could not escape. Their houses were washed away,” Ratheef said.
“If the people are not located by evening, the death toll will rise significantly,” he added.
Opposition politicians in India have warned of the growing risk of landslides, following devastating landslides and floods that hit the state in 2018, killing more than 400 people and forcing over a million to evacuate.
“Our country has seen an alarming increase in landslides in recent times. There is the need of the hour for a comprehensive action plan to tackle rising natural hazards in ecologically fragile areas,” Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said in Parliament on Tuesday.
Gandhi also called for an increase in and faster payment of the compensation announced by the Indian government – $2,400 each to families of flood and landslide victims and $600 to those injured.
Floods are common during the southwest monsoon season in Kerala, which usually runs from June to September.
Local media reported that Tuesday’s rains had washed away many bridges, cutting off small towns and villages from the state’s highway network and complicating rescue efforts. State minister Krishnankutty Rajan said authorities were trying to fly stranded villagers and build another bridge to reach Mundakkai village, where many are feared stranded, according to the Hindu newspaper.
The India Meteorological Department said rains are expected to continue in Wayanad and three adjoining districts of Kerala on Tuesday.
Shams Irfan and Bryan Pietsch contributed to this report.
