Wayanad landslide disaster reaffirms Kerala’s vulnerability to extreme weather

As death toll crosses 250, experts warn that the State’s topography and intensifying climate patterns spell a future of increased disaster risk.

View of Chooralmala in Wayanad which was cut off after the massive landslide. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Massive landslides hit Kerala’s Wayanad district in the early hours of Tuesday, July 30, killing at least 250 people after heavy rains battered the area for hours. Officials fear many others are trapped under the debris. The worst affected areas are within Wayanad district. Currently, rescue operations are hindered by ongoing precipitation, which the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasts will continue until August 1. “We have rescued 80 injured people from the disaster region,” Vinod Pillai, additional superintendent of the Wayanad police, told Bloomberg News, adding that many more are feared dead.

The affected areas in Wayanad include Mundakkai, Chooralmala, Attamala, and Noolpuzha towns, which remain cut off following the landslide. An Indian Navy team from the Ezhimala Naval Base in Kannur district was dispatched to Chooralmala to assist with rescue operations, at the request of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The Army and Air Force have also mobilised for rescue operations in the area, which have been hampered by the collapse of a main bridge in Chooralmala. Reports state that local hospitals are treating over 120 injured, while around 250 people have been rescued and shifted to relief camps. State Chief Secretary V Venu has declared official mourning on July 30 and July 31.

In a press conference following the landslides, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan confirmed that 93 bodies have been recovered. He stated that the government would make all possible efforts “on a war footing” to rescue those still trapped and deliver relief. Vijayan said, “The initial landslide happened at 2 am, followed by another at 4:10 am, causing the Iruvazhanji River, which runs through the region, to divide into two.” He added that five Ministers are overseeing the rescue and relief operations in the district. The Chief Minister also announced the opening of 42 relief camps in Wayanad and 118 camps across Kerala.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha following the disaster, Leader of the Opposition and former Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi demanded that the Centre extend all possible support for rescue and rehabilitation efforts. During Zero Hour, he also sought enhanced compensation for the next of kin of those killed in the landslides and called for the restoration of vital transport and communication lines. In response to the disaster, Prime Minister Modi announced an ex-gratia payment of ₹2 lakh for each deceased victim’s next of kin.

Climate change vulnerability

Kerala is prone to heavy rains during the monsoon season, which starts in June and has historically led to flooding and loss of lives. The last major landslide in the State occurred in 2020 when an avalanche crashed down on tea plantation workers in the Kanan Devan Hills of Idukki district, killing 65 people, mostly estate workers.

Search operations continue after landslides hit Mundakkai village in Wayanad on August 1, 2024. | Photo Credit: FRANCIS MASCARENHAS/REUTERS

In 2018, devastating floods killed more than 400 people across Kerala, destroying homes, forested areas, and infrastructure. Dr. S Sreekumar, a disaster risk consultant, told The Week in 2022 that 295 people died due to landslides between 1961 and 2016.

In 2021, dozens died due to multiple landslides and floods in Kerala’s Kottayam and Idukki districts. Rain-related incidents such as landslips and flash floods claimed several lives in 2022 as well. The Climate Report of India, released by the India Meteorological Department in January 2023, revealed that extreme weather events claimed 32 lives in Kerala in 2022.

In July 2022, the Ministry of Earth Sciences informed the Lok Sabha that Kerala witnessed the highest number of major landslides in the country over the past seven years. Of the 3,782 landslides between 2015 and 2022, 2,239 (nearly 59.2 percent) were reported from Kerala.

Roxy Mathew Koll, a climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology in Pune, projects that extreme rains will intensify across India and over the Western Ghats from Kerala to Maharashtra. He explained that roughly half of Kerala consists of hills and mountainous regions with slopes greater than 20 degrees, making these areas prone to landslides during heavy rains.

With inputs from Bloomberg, ANI, PTI, AFP, AP