Questions on negligence have been raised after a 34-year-old youth who volunteered to be part of a mock drill organised by Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to test the flood preparedness, died by drowning.
The tragic mishap occurred during the mock drill at Manimala river near Keezhvaipur. organised by the NDMA with help from fire and rescue officials in Pathanamthitta on Thursday, December 29. The victim has been identified as Binu Soman, a resident of Kalloppara in Pathanamthitta.
Binu was one of the four volunteers who took part in the drill designed to create awareness on flood situations. The officers pulled him out of the river and took him to a private medical college in Thiruvalla but his life could not be saved. There are allegations that the irresponsibility of the organisers resulted in the tragedy.
“As per the mock drill plan, the four volunteers had to enter the river and NDMA officers would rescue them using boats. But the officials did not realise Binu was trapped in mud. He was rescued after 30 minutes. The delay in rescue operation caused the death, if they were more careful his life could have been saved,” said Cherian Mannancherry, vice president, Kalloppara Grama Panchayath, while speaking to TNM.
Similar mock drills were organised in various parts of the district on Thursday. “I gave CPR to him and I am sure that he had no life. I was also a part of the drill,” Moncy Kuriakose, another person who is trained for disaster management said. Both NDMA and fire and rescue officials are being blamed for the mishap.
There are allegations that apart from failure in following safety protocols, the officials also tried to hide the death. An eyewitness alleged that Binu was dead but they kept him in a ventilator at the hospital. “The motor of the boat that went for the rescue was not working and they rowed him to the bank. After reaching the hospital they kept him in a ventilator for hours, only later did they declare death. For almost 45 mins he was missing in water but these officials had no clue he was in danger, it is to hide this fact they intentionally did not declare death on time,” Jobin, a resident, who witnessed the incident alleged.
However, Revenue Minister K Rajan, while speaking to Deshabhimani daily, denied all the allegations and said there were no lapses. “According to available information he died after collapsing while the mock drill was on. There are no unnatural causes,” the minister said.
The Minister has called for a report on the incident from Pathanamthitta District Collector