Harrowing scenes unfold as search and rescue ops continue

Harrowing scenes of dead bodies in sitting and lying positions inside destroyed houses could be seen as rescue operations resumed in the landslide-devastated Mundakkai hamlet in Kerala’s Wayanad district on Wednesday morning.

The rescuers could reach many inland areas, which were totally cut off, only on Wednesday morning.

According to visuals aired on TV channels, at one place, army personnel could be seen breaking the tin roof of a house that was completely submerged in mud and using ropes to reach inside to retrieve the bodies of those trapped there.

A local man, who went inside one such house, said he saw mud-covered bodies in sitting positions on chairs and lying down on cots.

“The deceased persons might have been sitting or lying down when the tragedy struck them in the wee hours of Tuesday,” he said.

However, authorities have not officially responded about this so far.