THIRUVANNAMALAI: At least seven persons, including five children, are feared trapped inside a house beneath a landslide near the lower slopes of the Annamalaiyar Hill in Tiruvannamalai district on Sunday.
The landslide, which occurred around 4.30 pm, was triggered by incessant rainfall brought by cyclone Fengal. Rescue operations were halted by Sunday night due to the rain and the possibility of more landslides. The National Disaster Response Force has been asked to take over efforts from Monday morning.
Officials said the trapped persons have been identified as Rajkumar, his wife Meena, their two children and his brother-in-law's three children. The family's house is cement sheet-roofed and located in VOC Nagar 11th Street, which has about over 300 residences. The landslide damaged two houses, including Rajkumar's.
"We received a distress call from the neighbours and immediately launched a rescue operation. The two houses have been heavily damaged and the neighbours reported that seven individuals are trapped inside. We have been unable to contact the family by phone. Efforts are under way to remove the debris, locate and rescue them," District Fire Officer Saravanan told TNIE.
According to officials, around 500 residents from VOC Nagar have been evacuated to safer locations.
Confirming the severity of the situation, Tiruvannamalai Collector D Baskara Pandian said, “The cyclone has also caused waterlogging in the area. While the residents say seven people have been trapped, the debris makes it difficult to confirm. All other locals have been evacuated to safety,” he said.
“Due to the heavy rain, attempting to dig through the mud is causing more stones to fall. Therefore, we are temporarily halting the rescue efforts and waiting until morning," said officials.
SP Dr M Sudhakar and other senior officials are on the ground supervising the effort.