KOCHI: Heavy rain caused mountains to collapse, resulting in rivers of mud, water, and falling boulders. On Tuesday, landslides tore through tea estates and communities in Kerala, southern India, killing at least 107 people, according to local media.
In Kerala’s Wayanad district, one of the most famous tourist attractions in India, the hillsides collapsed after midnight on Monday due to heavy rains. Tea plantation workers and their families, who were sleeping in temporary shelters, made up the majority of the victims.
Television footage showed rocks strewn across the hillsides, filthy water gushing through, and rescue personnel scuttling amid uprooted trees and collapsed tin shelters. Troops with stretchers and other rescue gear were being hauled across a stream to save lives.TV images showed a man who had been trapped in chest-high mud for hours, unable to extract himself until rescue personnel eventually arrived.
According to local Asianet TV, the landslides claimed the lives of at least 93 individuals and left 100 families stuck.
The impacted region was home to some 350 households, the majority of whom worked on tea and cardamom fields. According to state officials, 250 people have been evacuated thus far.
According to a statement from the chief minister’s office, army engineers were sent to assist in the construction of a new bridge after the one that connected the impacted area to the closest town of Chooralmala was demolished.
