KOZHIKODE: A day after flash floods claimed four lives in Maruthonkara, the whole village of Kothode, near Kuttiady, is waiting for any news about the two missing persons. All of them had gone to the hydroelectric project at Poozhithode in the origin of Kadanthara river, after helping the construction works of one of their friends. The body of Rajeesh (24), son of Ramakrishnan, Parakkal, was found on Sunday night and the bodies of Shajin Sasi (18), son of Sasi, Kakkuzhiyulla Kunnummal, Akshay Raj (18), son of Rajeevan, Parayulla Parambath and Ashwanth (20), son of Chandran, Kattodi, on Monday.
All the bodies were received almost one km away from the accident site and were shifted to Taluk Hospital, Kuttiady. After post-mortem, they were taken to Kothode and placed near Government Lower Primary School, where all of them had primary education. Thousands paid homage to the youngsters, all of whom were neighbours. There was no trace of Vishnu Raj (19), son of Rajan, Kuttikkunnummal and Vipin Das (20), son of Devadasan, Kuttikkunnummal, yet.
Meanwhile, Vishnu’s elder brother Jishnu returned safe, as he had not entered the waters. Shajin Sasi is the first cousin of Jishnu and Vishnu. The state government will announce the compensation to the families on Tuesday, said labour and excise minister T.P. Ramakrishnan, who visited the spot.
A 35-member team of National Defence Response Force was camping in the area leading the rescue operations along with six teams of Fire and Safety and the police, said team commander Avinash Kumar Amar. Safety nets were fixed across the river on Sunday night itself. According to the rescue team, the water level in the river, which otherwise looks calm and shallow, rose due to the burst of clouds in Thariode, Wayanad, and flooding from nearby Banasura Sagar dam. The youngsters from the nearby village were not aware of the danger.
IMD director rules out cloudburst as reason
Indian Meteorological Department, Thiruvananthapuram director Sudevan said that the Kuttiady tragedy was not caused by cloudburst. “We have ruled out the possibility,” he said. “The sky was very clear, a sign that there was no cloudburst,” he added. Dr Sekhar Kuriakose, head of State Emergency Operations Centre, too confirmed that the sky canopy over the state was over 80 per cent transparent. “That was why no warning was issued for the state on September 18,” he said. Mr Sudevan said that IMD satellites had not picked up any images of a cloudburst.
However, Dr Kuriakose was of the view that the sudden and intense precipitation could be called cloudburst. “It is a highly localised phenomenon that happens within a radius of 10 sq kms, and is nothing like a cyclone,” Dr Kuriakose said. “Any localised and intense precipitation in local parlance is called cloudburst,” he added.
Kadanthara, a.k.a the river that kills
It was not the first time that the Pasukkadavu area almost 15 km from Kuttiadi town is witnessing the loss of lives in a group. Ten people belonging to two families had died in a landslide in the same area in August 2004. The Kadanthara river, where the mishap happened on Sunday is also known as ‘Alukollippuzha’ (roughly translated as the river that kills people).
Rescue operation in progress at Kadanthara river where the youngsters drowned. (Photo: DC) The scenic beauty attracts visitors to the area that hosts a hydroelectric project of Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB). The only way to this site is a narrow lane entry restricted by the KSEB. The visitors, who prefer to enjoy the river from its origin, use the path behind the office towards the check dam. Locals say their long-pending demand to notify the area as an ecotourism destination fell on deaf ears.
“There is no caution or security personnel to alert the visitors on the dangers of the area. There is not a bridge to connect the two panchayats - Maruthonkara and Chakkittapara - lying on either side of the river. The authorities are still to learn from the tragedies,” said Chakkittapara ward member Shemili Sunil, who visited the accident site.
Narrow path slows down rescue operations
Rescue operations were slow in the narrow Kadanthara river on Sunday night and Monday. Though a 35-member National Defence Response Force (NDRF) and six teams of fire and safety officials are camping in the area, they say the operations were hit as the river was very narrow in shape and filled with boulders. “The rocks are slippery, making the rescue efforts slow. Adding to that is the hilly terrain, where the river is in a low-lying area.
The rescue operations are difficult in such areas, and chances of the people surviving after getting trapped in flash floods in such areas are low,” said NDRF team commander Avinesh Kumar Amar. Kozhikode rural SP N. Vijayakumar who visited the area said there were deep traps in the river, which could suck the bodies inside, in the strong water currents. “Once the bodies are trapped inside it's hard to trace them,” he said. The weak signals for mobile phones also hit the rescue operations.
