Wayanad landslides | Tamil Nadu fire brigades aid relief efforts

A team of 100 Fire and Rescue Services personnel from Tamil Nadu including Dog squad from State Training Centre, Tambaram is engaged in disaster relief works in the landslide-hit areas of Kerala’s Wayanad district.

The team is stationed at Chooralmala, Mundakkai and Attamala localities in Vythiri taluk of the district, where a series of landslides have claimed more than 270 lives, with around 240 people still missing. Personnel from Coimbatore, Erode, Tiruppur, Dindigul, Theni, Madurai, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Tenkasi joined rescue efforts at landslide-affected areas.

“The team has carried emergency rescue tenders, troop carriers and the necessary equipment for rescue and relief operations. The task largely involves removal of debris and a lot of digging, tools like cutting machines, digging machines, shovels, rubber boats, ropes and other rescue tools, etc. have also been included,” said P. Saravanakumar, Joint Director of Fire and Rescue Services (Western Region), who is leading the team in Wayanad.

Coimbatore District Fire Officer P. Pulukandi and Thoothukudi District Fire Officer M. Manoprasanna also part of the team, said the fire brigades from Tamil Nadu are working alongside the Kerala Fire and Rescue Services, who are familiar with the terrain. The work largely involves clearing of building debris and tree trunks to search for missing persons.