No vehicles allowed on Thamarassery Ghat road after fresh rockfall near landslide area; Fresh inspections to be conducted

Kozhikode: Traffic on Thamarassery Ghat Pass has once again been banned after stones fell on the road near the site of a recent landslide close to the View Point. Thamarassery DySP Susheer confirmed that all vehicles are prohibited from using the pass. Wayanad District Collector Dr Meghashree announced that vehicular movement on the Thamarassery Ghat Pass will remain restricted on Thursday and will be eased only after fresh inspections are conducted Thursday morning.

Traffic was halted on Tuesday night after a massive landslide of rocks, soil and trees near the viewpoint. Although movement was partially restored by Wednesday night, officials reimposed the restriction following an expert team’s warning that further landslides remain possible.

Stuck vehicles were cleared around 8.45 pm on Wednesday after debris was removed. Vehicles from the Lakkidi side were allowed to pass first, followed by those from the foothills. However, another minor landslide occurred later that evening.

The geology and soil conservation departments, which jointly inspected the area, found dangerously eroded rocks had fallen from a height of about 30 metres.

Work to clear the road began at 7 am on Wednesday and continued through the day, with teams using drones to monitor conditions. Large boulders were removed from the road with the help of stone breakers. Trees were cut using machines after being removed and placed on the road. All the stones and soil were loaded into tippers and dumped at PWD-owned land near Changalamaram and the area between the ninth hairpin bend and Thakarappadi, before the debris was transported to a designated PWD dumping site.

During the clearance work, a small landslide was reported around 4 pm, heightening concerns. The fire and safety department pumped water to assess whether soil or rocks had collapsed before work resumed under strict safety measures.