Wayanad landslide: How forest officials rescued tribal family stranded atop hill in 8 hours — A story of ’heroism’

As the rescue operation in Wayanad entered its fifth day, over 200 people are still missing, while hundreds have died, and the future of those rescued hangs in the balance. Amid these harrowing and tragic scenes in the landslide-hit Kerala, a story of "heroism" and "resilience" has stormed the internet.

Social media, and even Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, praised forest officials for rescuing a tribal family stranded in a cave up the hill in a “tireless 8-hour operation.”

Vijayan posted on X a picture of a forest official wrapping his arms around a child. He said, “Six precious lives were saved from a remote tribal settlement after a tireless 8-hour operation by our courageous forest officials in landslide-hit Wayanad. Their heroism reminds us that Kerala's resilience shines brightest in the darkest times. United in hope, we will rebuild and emerge stronger.”

How forest officials rescued the tribal family

On Thursday, a four-member team led by Kalpetta Range Forest Officer, K Hashis, undertook a dangerous trek deep inside the forest to rescue a tribal family.

The family included four toddlers aged between one and four, and their parents. According to news agency PTI, the family belonged to the Paniya community of Wayanad.

The family of six were stranded in a cave atop a hill overlooking a deep gorge. Hashis said the family belonged to a particular section of the tribal community, which generally avoided interactions with outsiders.

Hashis told PTI that officials had found the mother and a four-year-old child wandering near the forest region on Thursday. Upon an inquiry, officials came to know about her three other children and their father stranded in a cave without food.

"They normally survive on forest products and sell them in the local market to purchase rice. However, it seems like, due to the landslide and the heavy rains, they were unable to procure any food," Hashis said.

Along with Hashis, section forest officer, BS Jayachandran, beat forest officer, K Anil Kumar and RRT (Rapid Response Team) member Anoop Thomas took part in the over seven-kilometer-long journey to rescue the family.

It took over a four-and-a-half-hour trek for the team to reach the cave. The Forest Range Officer said they had to encounter slippery and steep rocks amid heavy downpours in the region.

The officer narrated how they persuaded the father to come along with them and tied the children to their bodies to bring them to a safe place.

The officers had to tie ropes to trees and rocks to climb the slippery rocks, which he described as hazardous.

"The children were tired, and we fed them with whatever we had carried. Later, after much persuasion, their father agreed to come with us, and we tied the children to our bodies and started our trek back," Hashis said.

The officers returned to the Attamala anti-poaching office, where the children were fed and given clothes and footwear. "Currently, they are housed there. The children are safe now," he was quoted as saying.

As the rain intensified, the forest department shifted most of the members of the tribal communities in Wayanad to secure places. "The said family, however, had been living inside the forest for some time," the officer added.

A picture of one of the officers holding a child close went viral on social media on Friday.

About Wayanad tragedy

Kerala Health Minister Veena George said on Friday that the death toll in the massive landslides that occurred on July 30 in Chooralmala and Mundakkai of Wayanad stood at 308.

Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Saturday that 215 bodies were recovered so far as rescue operations are in the final phase in landslides-hit Wayanad. "206 people are still missing and 83 are undergoing treatment at various hospitals in Wayanad, Kozhikode and Malappuram districts," the CM was quoted by PTI as saying.