KOZHIKODE (Kerala): One person has been reported missing in a landslide that hit Vilangad area of the Kozhikode district in Kerala on Tuesday morning, even as the state’s Wayanad district is reeling from landslides triggered by torrential rainfall.
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are engaged in search and rescue operations.
The landslide destroyed the Malayangad bridge and partially damaged four houses along the riverbank. As a result, 15 families are isolated, though no casualties have been reported.Residents along the riverbanks have been relocated.
In another incident, a landslide on the Kaithapoyil-Anorammal-Valliyad road has buried approximately 80 meters of the road under debris, leading to the evacuation of seven families in the area.
Additionally, landslides in the Pashukadav area of Kuttikkad Maruthonkara village in the Kohzhikode district have caused widespread disruption.
Flooding due to the rains has led to waterlogging of streets and houses and shops getting innundated. Due to rising water levels in the Kadantara river, residents from Preakkandod, Mukkam, and Peetikappara regions have been evacuated to temporary shelters.
Two shutters of the Kakkayam Dam were raised by four feet in various stages owing to the rising water levels.Residents living along the banks of the Kuttayyadi river have been advised to exercise caution.
Heavy rainfall has caused the water levels in Poonur, Mahe, Kuttayyadi, Chaliyar, and Cherupuzha rivers to touch dangerous levels. Residents in these areas have been advised to remain vigilant.Due to the severe rain, visitor access to tourist spots in the district has been restricted, and quarry operations have been halted.
Currently, 854 people from 196 families are staying in 41 relief camps across the Kozhikode district. Many have moved to relatives’ homes. Residents in landslide-prone areas have been advised to relocate.
There are 24 relief camps set up in the Kozhikode Taluk sheltering 298 people. Two camps have been set up in the Vadakara Taluk camps (21 people), seven camps in Koilandy Taluk (161 people) and eight camps have been set up at the Thamarassery Taluk (374 people).
Speaking on the search and rescue operations in Wayanad, S Shankar Pandian, Deputy Commandant, NDRF said, “Our teams are located at various locations in Wayanad. Even in Kozhikode, a landslide was suspected, the NDRF team is deployed there. Already, three teams of NDRF are in Wayanad. We are doing our best to carry out rescue efforts. We are facing difficulty in reaching interior parts in the landslide-affected area.”
Kerala Chief Secretary V Venu said that over 80 bodies were recovered as rescue operations continued in the landslide-hit regions in Wayanad today
.Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for eight districts in the state for heavy rainfall.
A red alert has been issued for the Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasargod districts. An orange alert has been issued for Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam and Ernakulam districts for today. (ANI)