Wayanad landslides | 75 children dead or missing; teachers recount memories
75 children, many who are school students, are either dead or missing. Over a 100 students are in camps going through severe trauma, as some have lost both parents
On June 30, 2024, when massive landslides devastated the rural areas of Punchirimattom, Mundakkai, Chooralmala, and Vellarmala, the principal of the Vocational Higher Secondary School in Vellarmala, was at home, about 40 km away from Ground Zero.
On hearing the news, Bhavya Lal L L was initially overcome by shock but quickly gathered herself and took the most sensible and effective action a school principal could take. She had the contact numbers of all the higher secondary school students in a WhatsApp group, and, with the help of some colleagues, she called each number to account for every student.
When news television correspondents contacted her, she gave these details and on day one there were 21 students who were not accounted for. But, in the next few hours, they could locate 20 of them, with one still missing on the fourth day of search and rescue operations.
School building that saved lives
In a chat with The Federal, Bhavya Lal said, “I have been teaching at this school for the past 15 years and lived very close to it for almost 10 years before relocating. This village and its people hold a special place not only in my heart but also in the hearts of all the teachers here. It is devastating to realise that so many people I knew so well have suddenly vanished. We, the teachers, are visiting all the relief camps to check on our students and their families. We are all here for them; it's the least we can do in this difficult time. As for the future of the school, I’m uncertain — it's a decision that the department will make in due course."
The image of the remains of the Government Vocational Higher Secondary School in Vellarmala has become emblematic of the devastating mudslide in Mundakkai, Wayanad. In fact, according to some rescue workers, the school building, which withstood the debris flow, helped save many lives by partially blocking the force of the mudslide.
Vellarmala VHSS had already gained online fame thanks to a music video written by the head teacher of the high school section, A V Unnikrishnan, which became quite popular on the internet. Following the landslide, the video, which beautifully captures the landscape around the school, and the song composed by film actor Pramod Veliyanad has gone viral. It now serves as a poignant record of the area's original geography and topography.
Unnikrishnan, a native of Alappuzha district, was out of town on leave when the disaster struck. He had been preparing to stage a play with the school students this year and had roped in his theatre activist friends from Alappuzha for it.
“I had known Unnikrishnan Master since 2015 when Job Madathil and I co-wrote the play Oru Jathi Pilleru. We planned to stage this play at Vellarmala School. Last week, Job and I decided to visit Wayanad and informed Unnikrishnan, who was delighted and offered us a place to stay. Unfortunately that lodge too has been washed away. We intended to select students and begin rehearsals in August, but heavy rains prevented our trip. We hope to reschedule for the coming weeks,” said Jayakumar M, playwright and activist from Alappuzha.
A teacher in distress
Meanwhile, Ambalappuzha MLA, H Salam shared on his social media this message: "Yesterday, when I called Unnikrishnan, my classmate from SD College, he was crying uncontrollably. He is currently in the disaster-hit area of Vellarmala. Unnikrishnan has spent 17 years at Vellarmala School without requesting a transfer. He was under huge distress about being called to identify the deceased.”
Another video from the Government Lower Primary School at Mundakkai in Wayanad gained social media attention last year. It featured one of the teachers giving rides to her students on a small bicycle in the school playground. Tragically, all three girls in that video lost their lives in the mudslide.
“Three of the students featured in the video have died, along with their entire families. Some other students who had just passed out from the school this year also perished in the landslide,” said a volunteer involved in the rescue operations.
75 children dead or missing
According to available figures, more than 75 children are either dead or missing, many of whom were school students. Over a hundred students are currently at camps, enduring severe trauma, with many having lost both parents.
Two schools, Government LP School Mundakkai and Government Vocational Higher Secondary School Vellarmala, have been completely destroyed, leaving the future of the students, who have survived this catastrophe, uncertain.
According to Kerala general Education Minister V Sivankutty, 49 children have either gone missing or died in the landslide disaster in Wayanad district.
He added that the government would rebuild the two schools damaged in the landslide, reissue certificates lost in the disaster without delay, and discuss the continuation of the students' education with the Chief Minister.
“Special priority will be given to resume the education of disaster-affected children. They will be given the opportunity to continue their education wherever they are. Arrangements for this will be made by the local bodies and the education department,” said Sivankutty.
Dealing with psychological trauma
Meanwhile, Pinarayi Vijayan said that currently, counselling is given under the aegis of state department of health to the survivors to deal with the psychological trauma caused by the disaster. Other competent agencies will be brought in to provide counselling to more people, he added.
The Chief Minister has proposed that online classes for the surviving children will start without delay, while the decision to rebuild the schools will be made at a later time. However, reintegrating the panic-stricken and devastated students into the classroom will be a challenging task for both authorities and teachers.