Kalpetta: The desperate search for the missing persons continues even as the team involved in the mission has no clue regarding the number of persons disappeared as a huge part of the hill which came down with vengeance carrying heavy boulders and loads of mud wiped out everything that stood in its way. According to K. Babu, Mundakkai ward member, it has become impossible to count the deaths and the retrieved bodies from the debris. “The number of those missing in the tragedy is even greater than the number who have been rescued,” Babu said.

There were around 500 houses and many settlements, with more than 1,000 people living there before the devastating landslide destroyed the area. According to the data available with Meppadi panchayat, Mundakkai region alone had 540 houses, of which only 25 have survived the disaster. Six settlements were wiped out, and another six were completely demolished. Many individuals, including local residents and guest workers, may have been trapped inside the debris of houses and settlements destroyed in the landslide, Babu said. Though rescue activities have been ongoing vigorously without respite, the magnitude of the disaster makes it challenging for those involved in the rescue mission.

“When we reached Mundakkai, the place looked like hell. There were cries from everywhere. We could barely comprehend what had happened as parts of human bodies were scattered around, making it difficult for a normal person to endure the suffering. The people rescued were those who had fled the scene and sought shelter in a resort and a madrasa in the region. We moved them to relief camps,” Babu said.

Since a warning was issued in the region, the Tahsildar, fire force team, district collector, and MLA T. Siddique were present in Mundakkai the day before the landslide. They had also relocated some people to relief camps. They were moving people even until midnight, shifting residents from Mundakkai and Puthurmala to safer locations. The officials had planned to move the remaining people from Mundakkai to safer places later. However, the landslide struck the region in the early hours of Tuesday. When we arrived, the entire Chooralmala was buried under tons of mud, Babu said. Local people had immediately reached the site and began rescue activities under extremely hostile conditions, he added.

“It was around 2 a.m. when I went out of the house after hearing a loud noise. Some people from other houses were also running towards the madrasa near my home. As the noise grew louder, we all began running aimlessly. Our only thought was to escape as far as possible from the source of the noise, which we knew was a landslide,” said Abdul Razack of Mundakkai, a survivor who is still trying to recover from the shock of the landslide. He is now staying in a relief camp in Meppadi. “By morning, no houses were left in the region. The number of missing persons is greater than what the officials are reporting,” Razack said.

The support received for the rescue mission at the tragic site has been remarkable, said Chooralmala ward member Nooruddeen. “The landslide in Mundakkai occurred while efforts were underway to move people to safer locations. We informed as many people as we could about the incident and stayed at the site to assist in the rescue activities,” he said.

Many people are being admitted to Wayanad Medical College Hospital and Meppadi WIMS Hospital. The survivors from the disaster-stricken region are being sheltered in Meppadi panchayat community hall, LP School, and High School, Nooruddeen added.