Wayanad landslide revives 2024 horror as rescue operations continue

A major landslide struck Kerala's Wayanad district on Tuesday (July 7), reviving painful memories of the devastating 2024 disaster that claimed more than 250 lives. The latest landslide, reported from Kalladi near Meppady, occurred close to the site of the twin-tunnel road project connecting Kozhikode and Wayanad, where workers were staying.

The landslide occurred near Meenakshi Bridge at Kalladi after debris crashed onto the under-construction Anakkompoyil-Meppadi twin-tunnel road project. Triggered by torrential rain measuring 226 mm in the last 24 hours, the incident left at least one person dead, seven seriously injured and seven others missing, according to preliminary information shared by Chief Minister VD Satheeshan.

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Residents, police and Fire and Rescue Services launched search operations immediately, with at least three workers rescued from the debris. Several vehicles used to transport tunnel workers were also damaged.

When the devastating Wayanad landslides struck Chooralmala and Mundakkai in July 2024, The Federal reporters travelled overnight from Bengaluru to Ground Zero, navigating flooded roads, police barricades and damaged highways to document one of Kerala's worst natural disasters. What awaited them was a landscape buried under mud, frantic rescue operations, Army teams building temporary bridges and families desperately searching for their loved ones.

2024 memories resurface

Memories of the catastrophic landslides that struck Chooralmala and Mundakkai in July 2024 have resurfaced. The disaster killed around 254 people, injured nearly 400 and left more than 100 missing, making it one of Kerala's deadliest natural calamities.

Among the many stories The Federal documented was that of 24-year-old Shruthi, whose life changed forever in a single night. A team from The Federal was one of the first to reach the spot.

Shruthi lost her parents and younger sister in the landslides. Days later, tragedy struck again when her fiancé also passed away, leaving her without the family she had hoped to build a future with. The landslide also swept away her newly built home, nearly Rs 4 lakh in cash and around 15 sovereigns of gold.

Now working as an accountant at MIMS Hospital in Kozhikode and living with relatives near Kalpetta, Shruthi had shared with The Federal the emotional burden of identifying her loved ones.

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"We found my father and sister the next day and performed their last rites. But my mother remained missing until DNA tests confirmed she had been buried in grave C-92 at Puthumala. Jenson (fiancée) and I visit her grave, but I still need time before deciding whether to exhume her and lay her to rest beside my father and sister," she had said.

DNA test to confirm

Her story reflected the anguish experienced by hundreds of families forced to rely on DNA testing because many victims' bodies were too damaged to be identified visually.

At hospitals across Wayanad, relatives waited anxiously for DNA results while doctors worked under immense emotional strain. Khairuneesa, searching for her missing relativeAbbas, had told The Federal, "We recognised a body by a mole on his neck, but another family believed it was their loved one too. Only the DNA test could tell us the truth."

Another resident, Ramesan, whose brother was missing, described the ordeal as unbearable, saying the DNA process was the only way families could find closure.

Many school children went missing

The disaster also devastated the region's schools. More than 75 children were either killed or reported missing, while over 100 students took shelter in relief camps after losing parents and homes. Government LP School Mundakkai and Government Vocational Higher Secondary School, Vellarmala, were destroyed.

Bhavya Lal,principal of the Vellarmala school, had told The Federal that teachers were visiting relief camps every day to support surviving students and their families. "This village and its people are like family to us. So many familiar faces have suddenly disappeared. Right now, we are simply trying to stand by our students," she had said.

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The recurring disasters also underline Kerala's vulnerability to landslides. According to Union government data, the state recorded 2,239 major landslides between 2015 and 2022—the highest in the country. The Geological Survey of India documented 3,782 major landslides nationwide during the period, with Kerala accounting for nearly 60 per cent of them.

As rescue teams continue searching for the missing in Kalladi, Tuesday's landslide has reopened wounds that had barely begun to heal, bringing back memories of families torn apart, lives rebuilt from nothing, and stories of resilience that continue to define the hill district.