Churches and Mosques turned into make-shift hospitals in Kerala's landslide-hit areas

By Linda Bordoni

Many people are missing and feared trapped after heavy rains triggered massive landslides that swept through tea estates and villages in Kerala in the early hours of Tuesday.

Almost 200 others were injured and 187 more remain unaccounted for, following the landslides that hit hilly areas in the southern state’s Wayanad district, flattening houses, uprooting trees and destroying bridges.

More than 5,500 people have been rescued from landslide-hit areas, said a state official, while over 300 rescuers are continuing their efforts to pull out people stuck under mud and debris.

However, blocked roads and unstable terrain are reportedly hampering search and rescue operations and the Indian Army is constructing a temporary bridge after the main bridge linking one of the worst-affected areas was swept away by the mud.

Several areas, including Meppadi, Mundakkai and Chooralmala, were isolated, and roads were washed away causing immense damage to homes, officials said, noting that “Efforts to locate missing persons continue with all available resources.”

And as more than 8,300 people have been moved to 82 government-run relief the Health Minister’s Office noted that temporary hospital facilities will be established at a mosque and madrasa and a temporary hospital system will also be established at Chooralmala Church and Polytechnic College.

Solidarity from Kerala Catholic Bishops

Similarly, the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council in a statement said, they will work together with the government agencies and social organizations to speed up rescue operations.

In a statement “The Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council said it will fully cooperate with government efforts to provide solace to the victims.

“We will work together with diocesan teams and volunteers in the affected areas to provide physical assistance, comfort, and courage to overcome the crisis.” It said expressing solidarity to all affected and paying tribute to those who lost their lives in the landslides.

The Indian Meteorological Department said “Monsoon patterns are increasingly erratic and the quantum of rainfall received in a short spell of time has increased, resulting in frequent instances of landslides and floods."

(Source AP and other agencies)