From among the dense tea bushes, they peeked and quickly retreated, eyes wide with fear. These are the dogs of Wayanad’s Chooralmala, terrified and trembling, haunted by the catastrophic events of July 30. They are among the few remaining living beings in the landslide-ravaged regions of Chooralmala, Mundakkai, and Attamala. Abandoned and searching for their caregivers, they huddled together, not soothed by the biscuits or scraps of food offered to them. Some sought refuge in the partially ruined houses.
Located approximately 13 km from Meppadi town, past the still visible scars of the 2019 landslide in Puthumala, Chooralmala sits quietly by its namesake river. “This wasn’t a river, it was a tiny rivulet,” Shyju, a local resident, told TNM. “There was a bridge that connected us to Mundakkai and Attamala. But on that day, this rivulet transformed into a raging river, overflowing with a force and sound we had never witnessed before.”
Now, what’s left in Chooralmala is a haunting fear, shouts of rescuers and the rushing sound of the river. The rain, which began on July 28, has not stopped, with its intensity fluctuating.
Three to four kilometres before we reach Chooralmala, ambulances are lined up, waiting for their turn. The wait is not long; every 30 minutes, one of the ambulances can be seen rushing to the riverbank. At the edge of Chooralmala, where the town abruptly ends due to the landslide, the Indian Army’s Madras Engineer Group (MEG) is constructing an iron bridge, aided by machinery brought in from crusher units.
Alongside the bridge construction, every 30 minutes a body is recovered from the other side of the river, either from Mundakkai or Attamala. The final group of trapped individuals from Mundakkai were rescued by the first half of July 31. However, the majority of those who were brought across the river via the zipline set up by the army and NDRF were not survivors but deceased victims.
“Until last night (July 30), our priority was rescuing people trapped on the other side. Now that we have transported everyone who was trapped, we are searching for bodies. Since early this morning, the ambulances have been carrying only dead bodies,” said Shajeer, a volunteer from Mananthavady.
The entire region is teeming with volunteers—hundreds of them—engaged in the grim task of searching through the debris for any remaining survivors. “When we conduct searches, our only hope is to find someone alive beneath the rubble, but all we find are dead bodies. Besides them, we only find a few scared dogs and cattle,” said Mujeeb, another volunteer. Mujeeb and a few others were working to remove a huge heap of mud inside a partially damaged house after hearing that something might be buried underneath.
According to government data, the death toll in the region exceeds 250, with another 200 people missing. “In Mundakkai, the fallen houses and buildings have not yet been cleared. We fear that there are more bodies beneath the rubble,” a local volunteer said.
“Since the morning of the 30th, we have been finding bodies in the river, in houses, in the mud, and during searches through the debris,” he added. Once a body is found, it is covered with a woollen blanket, secured, and taken to the ambulances to be transported immediately to the hospital in Meppadi.
Nearby, a makeshift bridge made of wood and sacks allowed rescuers to reach Mundakkai. The bridge was damaged on July 31, trapping rescuers and media on the other side for an entire afternoon as the water level in the river rose and mud battered the bridge.
Chooralmala town starts with a mosque, which has now been converted into a relief centre. From the mosque to the Vocational Higher Secondary School in Vellarmala, which is about five buildings away, the area is not significantly damaged. “This school protected the rest of the town. The landslide came from the top and flattened everything up to the school. In a way, the school protected the rest of the town,” said Sudheer, a rescue volunteer.
Moving forward, the road ends abruptly, revealing a landscape flattened and engulfed in debris, huge rocks, and sludgy mud. A few ruined houses lie on the left side, while on the right the river is in spate.
Every small sound now frightens Chooralmala. Volunteers run out of fear whenever they hear a noise from the top of the town, where the landslide originated and swept away the entire village and town. “Be careful when you walk. This wide road you see was once a village with houses, and there were many wells here, so you might fall into one,” warned Chandran, a volunteer, while walking toward the upper parts of Chooralmala.
The fire force team coming from the opposite direction advised, “Please step on the footprints you see. Otherwise, you may get stuck in the mud.” Their caution was warranted; the ground was unstable and our legs sank into the mud.
From the first floor of a house, two dogs peeked out, barked briefly, and then went inside. Another volunteer was holding a dog, both completely soaked from the rain. “I found this dog here, searching for its caregiver. I hope someone can adopt it. I’ve been looking after it for the last two days,” the volunteer said.
Two calves, having somehow escaped the disaster, are sheltered in the mosque of Chooralmala. Only a few cattle remain in Mundakkai. These are the only lives left in these regions.