In Wayanad, for those who lived, a wait for the dead

Rescuers only reached them hours later, as a major bridge leading to Mundakkai was destroyed in the landslide. “There were many others injured in the village, but we could not do anything for them. We could only wait for the rescue teams,” Muhammed said, echoing the helplessness many in the district felt. His wife Jameela and daughter-in-law Soufiya, who were with him, survived the disaster.

Members of rescue teams conduct rescue operation at a landslide site after multiple landslides in the hills in Wayanad, in the southern state of Kerala. (Reuters)

“When day broke on Tuesday, we saw that the entire village was wiped out. Houses with many families were buried under debris,” he said.

Another survivor, 46-year-old Stephen A, said he fled his house with his wife and son just as debris from the first landslide reached. “Around 1 am, we heard a loud sound. Along with my wife Pravitha and 15-year-old son Alwin, I rushed out of the house. The moment we came out, the heavy flow from above took down our residence,” he said.

He said he broke his ribs when he fell while running, but his wife and son were not injured.

The people who moved to safer locations after the first landslide managed to survive, Stephen said. But those who were not as badly hit by the first landslide, and stayed put, were buried alive when the second, bigger landslide hit around 4.30 am.

Among them were Stephen’s wife’s elder sister, her husband and son. “Early in the morning, we tried to look for them in the debris, but we were helpless. I lost all my neighbours and don’t know how many workers of the plantation, where I work as a supervisor, are still alive,” he said.

Apart from dozens of people and their houses, the landslide also swept away all shops, the madrasa, and plantation offices in Mundakkai village.

In Wayanad’s Kalpetta town, Kunjabdulla spent the day doing the rounds of hospitals and relief camps. Six of his relatives are missing, and each time an ambulance would come with a body, he would rush to see if it was one of them.

“Initially, I thought they had survived, so I checked among the injured at hospitals and in relief camps. But now, all hope is lost,” Kunjabdulla said.

In the villages of Mundakkai and Chooralmala, where the two major landslides struck, several families perished altogether, leaving no one to even look for their bodies.

Naushad was at the health centre to identify four of his family members. “My cousin, his wife and two children died. The bodies of the children have been found and I have identified them. But I’m still waiting for the bodies of my cousin and wife,” he said.

Ayoob is in a similar predicament, waiting to identify three from his family. “I went to the government and private hospitals in search of them. Now I’m waiting for the ambulances,” he said.

Several of the identified bodies were buried at Meppadi Juma Masjid.