Four people died and four others went missing after a landslide and flash flood hit separate locations in Kerala’s Idukki and Malappuram respectively on Sunday, September 20.
In Idukki, two people were killed and one person seriously injured when a mudslide swept away a temporary shed at a garlic farm in Kottakkamboor near Munnar’s Vattavada at around 3 pm.
The deceased have been identified as Kottakkamboor residents Balakrishnan, 50, and his sister Chinnu, 35. Balakrishnan’s wife Mariyamma, 40, was seriously injured and is undergoing treatment at the Munnar Government Hospital.
The three were working at the farm when heavy rain began. They took shelter in a temporary shed, which was struck by the landslide and carried away by the debris. Local residents rescued the three, but Balakrishnan and Chinnu died at the spot.
Devikulam Subcollector V M Arya said torrential rain was believed to have triggered the landslide. An electric pole also fell onto the shed during the incident, and authorities are examining whether electrocution contributed to the deaths. The exact cause will be known after the post-mortem examinations.
The bodies have been taken to Adimaly Taluk Hospital for post-mortem. As the incident occurred in a remote part of Kottakkamboor, rescue workers had to use bamboo stretchers to carry the victims.
Meanwhile, in Malappuram, two people died after a flash flood swept through the Kottapuzha river at TK Colony near Pookkottumpadam at around 5.30 pm on Sunday. Four others are still missing.
The deceased have been identified as Tirur native Parannaparamban Muhammad Kutty, 65, and Mangadan Anas, 26, of Edarikode. Anas was working as a private bus employee.
Those missing are Karuvarakundu native Rahim, 35, Wandoor Kottakkunnu native Kuppanath Sajjad, Chettiyarammal Kuruppath Rafeeque, 41, and Sajitha, 26, a resident of TK Colony. Sajitha was reportedly washing clothes at a riverbank when she was swept away.
The flash flood occurred after heavy rain in the forested areas upstream, even though there had reportedly been little rain around the location. A large number of people were at different spots along the Kottapuzha river, a popular destination for visitors, when the water level rose suddenly.
A joint search involving the National Disaster Response Force, Fire and Rescue Services and local residents resumed at 6.30 am on Monday after operations were suspended overnight because of the strong current.
Revenue Minister A P Anilkumar said that arrangements were being made to enable rescuers to enter the river and continue the search for those missing.