The death toll in the devastating landslides that hit Chooralmala and Mundakkai in the Wayanad district on Tuesday morning touched 339 on Friday as the Army, NDRF and navy personnel recovered more bodies. However, the official count stands at around 200. With nearly 300 persons still missing the death toll is expected to go up.

It has been reported that the thermal scanner of the Army detected the presence of life under the debris in Mundakkai. An Army official told the media that the thermal scanner detected a signal of breathing during the search. A shop was located on the spot where the signal was received. It is suspected that either a human or an animal could be trapped there. Army and NDRF personnel have intensified the search on the spot. A medical team has also moved to the place.

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On Thursday, the fourth day of the rescue operations in landslide-hit Wayanad, four people, who were living in isolation in a house near the disaster area, were rescued by the Army. Two women and two men were found in a house in Patavettikunnu. Johnny, Jomol, Abraham and Christy were rescued from Kanjirakat. The search team found them at their house in Patavettikun.

On Thursday, 40 teams were carrying out search operations in Mundakkai and Churalmala region, dividing the search area into 6 zones,in a more planned manner. The first zone is the combined area of Attamala and Aaranmala. Mundakkai is the second zone, Punjirimattam is the third zone, Vellarimala Village Road is the fourth zone, and GVHSS Vellarimala is the fifth zone. The banks of the river are the sixth zone.

The search operation is being carried out jointly by the Army, NDRF, DSG, Coast Guard, Navy, and other departments. Each team will consist of three local people and one forest department employee. In addition, the search operation will continue within the 40-kilometer radius of the Chaliyar River police station limits.

Forest Department officials, on Thursday, rescued a man and his three children of a family trapped in the forest near Soochipara waterfall. They were rescued after an eight-hour long mission. Knowing that some people belonging to the tribal colony are trapped, the forest department officials went to Eratkund Colony and saved them. It was a very adventurous trip. It was difficult to reach the colony at the foot of Soochipara Falls, Range Officer K. Ashif said.

Of the bodies recovered so far, some have been found in the Chaliyar river, which flows into the neighbouring Malappuram district. The river carried around 173 bodies, or rather parts of human bodies mutilated by the vengeful landslide, for around 25 km to Pothukallu near Nilambur in Malappuram district. 60 bodies and 113 body parts were recovered by rescuers from Chaliyar River in the last four days. The DNA of the body parts has been taken.

Meanwhile, the Kerala government ordered eight police stations adjoining the Chaliyar River in the Malappuram district to muster teams of local scouts and divers to recover the bodies of Wayanad landslide victims washed downstream by the swollen Iruvanjippuzha river adjacent to the disaster zone.

Kerala Health Minister Veena George said on Friday, “ICUs are ready in Wayanad hospitals to provide intensive care to those rescued from the disaster areas.”

Hospitals including Manjeri Medical College and Kozhikode Medical College, which can be reached by airlift, have also been set up to provide treatment for those who have been rescued, she said

Veena George said so far, the postmortem procedures of 199 dead bodies have been completed. Apart from this, DNA samples of body parts were also taken. She also said that a Mental Health Disaster Management team has been formed in Kerala to provide psychosocial support to survivors of the devastating landslide at Wayanad.

Meanwhile, the Army has completed the construction of a 190-m-long Bailey bridge over Chooralmala river by Thursday afternoon, to connect Chooralmala to Mundakkai. A team from the Madras Engineer Group, also known as the Madras Sappers, was engaged in the construction. This bridge is helping to speed up the rescue operations. More machinery, including excavators meant for the rescue operations could be moved through this bridge. It is after a gruelling day and night of tireless efforts that the Army successfully constructed the 190-foot-long steel bridge, designed to withstand heavy rains and floods.

In this connection, a viral photo on social media has become a powerful rebuttal to those who doubt women’s contributions to rescue operations. The photo features Major Sita Shelke, a woman army engineer, standing triumphantly on the Bailey bridge constructed by the Army at Mundakkai following a landslide. As the photo went viral on social media, it brought recognition to Major Shelke’s leadership in building the crucial bridge, showcasing her pivotal role in the rescue operation.

Six canines of the Kerala Police and the Indian Army came in handy in the search operations held at Chooralmala and Mundakkayi. In the past two days alone, two cadaver tracing dogs of Kochi city police helped authorities trace as many as six bodies hidden in the debris.

Kerala Police canines — Murphy, Maya and Maggi — on Wednesday helped in tracing four bodies from the debris. Murphy and Maya are of Belgian Malinois breed and Maggie is of Labrador Retriever breed.

The Army flew in three canines from Remount Veterinary Corps (RMC), Meerut, for the search operation. Jackey, Dixy and Sara are of Labrador Retriever breed. They helped in tracing a body in Mundakkayi on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Congress MP M Shashi Tharoor sought the landslides to be declared as a “calamity of severe nature”. In a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, he said this would facilitate urgent assistance from MPs to the affected areas.