Kerala landslides death toll hits 151, many missing as rain hampers rescue

Hundreds of rescue workers search through mud and debris for a second day after multiple landslides hit a hilly district in India’s southern state.

Hundreds of rescue workers are searching through mud and debris from multiple landslides that have killed at least 151 people in southern India’s Kerala state, police said.

Officials on Wednesday said nearly 1,000 people have been rescued and 187 are still missing after landslides, caused by relentless monsoon rains, hit the hills of Wayanad district early Tuesday morning.

Heavy rain in one of India’s most attractive tourist destinations collapsed hillsides, sending torrents of mud, water and tumbling boulders through tea and cardamom estates and small settlements – the worst disaster in the state since deadly floods in 2018.

The Indian Army said it rescued 1,000 people and has begun the process of constructing an alternate bridge after the main bridge connecting the worst-hit Mundakkai area with the nearest town of Chooralmala was washed away.

Mundakkai is in an area highly prone to disasters. However, the gushing soil, gravel and rock reached the town of Chooralmala, 6km (3.7 miles) away.

“The landslides happened at the top and then affected the lower valley areas where people were staying. Focus right now is to search the entire uphill area for stranded people and recover as many bodies [as possible],” MR Ajith Kumar, a state law and order official, told the Reuters news agency.

More than a dozen bodies were found overnight, said police officer Aijaz, who uses one name, as over 300 rescuers worked to pull out people stuck under mud and debris, but their efforts were hampered by extremely heavy rainfall, blocked roads and unstable terrain.

Nearly 350 of the 400 registered