Pinarayi Vijayan on Wayanad landslides: ‘Nobody left to be saved’

The death toll in the Wayanad landslides tragedy is expected to rise as Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan declared on Thursday that those alive had been saved over the past three days.

Officially 177 people have died, including 25 children and 70 women, and around 200 are missing. However, PTI, citing unconfirmed reports, reported that the real number of deaths was 276. Around 92 body parts have also been fished out of the Chaliyar River.

Around 350 buildings had been damaged in the landslides.

The rescue work had been hampered by several challenges, including treacherous terrain and a shortage of heavy equipment.

“It is assumed that nobody is left to be saved in the villages of Mundakkai, Chooralmala and Attamala. Rescue workers are looking into whether anyone got stranded individually. What is left is to retrieve bodies from the area,” he said, per The Indian Express.

1600 rescue workers, including those from the Army, Navy and NDRF, were pressed into the rescue operations.

Political leaders, including Vijayan and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra among others visited the displaced people, expressing their solidarity with them.

Meanwhile, on Thursday evening, the Army completed the Bailey Bridge between Chooralmala and Mundakkai. Now, the required equipment can be transported to disaster-affected areas.

After visiting Wayanad, Rahul Gandhi expressed his anguish.

“It is a terrible tragedy for Wayanad, for Kerala and the nation. We have come here to see the situation. It is painful to see how many people have lost family members and their houses. We will try to help and make sure that the survivors get what is their due,” Gandhi said while addressing reporters.

“A lot of them want to be relocated. There is a lot that needs to be done here. I would like to thank all those, including doctors, nurses, administration and volunteers,” he added.

The authorities have conducted 256 autopsies so far.

“Until 7 am today, we have completed 256 autopsies, which include body parts as well. So, it is not 256 full bodies, but also includes body parts. We have handed over 154 bodies to the district administration,” health minister Veena George said.