Death toll of the landslides in Wayanad 151, 187 missing

The death toll of the landslides in Wayanad, Kerala in India has risen to 151 and another 187 remain missing after heavy rain caused hillsides to collapse on Tuesday.

The figure was confirmed by Kerala Chief Minister’s spokesman PM Manoj.

It sent torrents of mud, water and tumbling boulders through tea and cardamom estates and small settlements.

This is the worst disaster since Kerala was hit by floods in 2018.

The Indian Army said it rescued 1,000 people and has begun the process to construct an alternate bridge after the main bridge linking the affected area to the nearest town of Chooralmala was destroyed.

“The landslides happened at the top and then affected the lower valley areas where people were staying. Focus right now is to search the entire uphill area for stranded people and recover as many bodies (as possible),” M R Ajith Kumar, a state law and order official, told Reuters.

Nearly 350 of the 400 registered houses in the affected region have been damaged, Asianet TV reported, citing district officials.

After a day of extremely heavy rainfall that hampered rescue operations, the weather department expects some respite on Wednesday, although the area is likely to receive rain through the day.

Wayanad is the constituency represented by Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha.