Wayanad landslides: NDRF teams, Army choppers, Ministers rush to Wayanad
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Multiple NDRF teams, two helicopters and other rescue efforts are on their way to Mundakkai, which has been totally cut off by devastating landslides that hit Kerala's hilly Wayanad district, the state government said on Tuesday.
State Revenue Minister K Rajan said one team of NDRF is working to clear the debris and create access as they progress towards Mundakkai.
Three more NDRF teams from Kollam, Arakkonam, and Bengaluru are also on their way, Rajan said.
"Mundakkai is in the foothills of a nearby mountain. The issue is that the area was totally cut off due to the destruction of a bridge. Now efforts are on to make a temporary bridge to facilitate the crossing of the rescue team," Rajan said.
He also said the extent of the damage has not yet been determined.
"One team of NDRF is clearing the way as they progress towards Mundakkai. Three more teams will arrive by afternoon. Two choppers of the Army will also reach soon," Rajan said.
He further said bodies were recovered downstream of the Chaliyar river.
"Nearly 70 people have been admitted to various hospitals in Kozhikode; at least 12 bodies are there in the hospitals," Rajan added.
Ministers Rajan, P A Mohammed Riyas and O Kelu are expected to reach Wayanad soon. Minister A K Saseendran has already reached the place and is visiting the injured. Another state Minister, Ramachandran Kadannappally has also reached the place.
Police and the Health department have started multiple call centres and control rooms.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan held a high-level evaluation meeting and visited the State Disaster Management Authority office in the state capital to assess the situation.
Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala, and Noolpuzha villages were among the areas affected and cut off by the landslides, authorities said.
Wayanad district Collector Meghasree D R said disaster relief work is progressing in affected areas and rescue operations are being carried out by the NDRF, Fire force, police and the Forest, Revenue and Local Self-government departments.
Along with government agencies, volunteers and local residents are cooperating in the rescue operation, she said in a statement.
According to district authorities, several families have been moved to the various camps or homes of their relatives in the wake of the landslides.
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
