Search operations continue in havoc hit areas
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Kozhikode: Search operations to find those who believed to be buried under rubble of the landslides are continuing in Puthumala and Kavalappara on Monday.
With more bodies retrieved on Sunday, the toll now stands at 113.
On Sunday, six more bodies have been retrieved. The bodies were recovered by Kerala Fire and Rescue Services.
Though ground penetrating radars (GPRs) were deployed to locate bodies under mounds of earth, the search was found not to be effective at the landslide site due to heavy rains and water content in the soil.
Of the six bodies recovered on Sunday, four have been identified as residents of Boothanam colony - Cheera, 60, wife Peraka; Aanakkaran Palan; Sreelakshmi, 15, daughter of Sivan; and Sreedharan, 60, son of Appootty.
The remaining two victims are women. However, they are yet to be identified.
District authorities on Sunday confirmed the death of 58 persons, including 46 at Kavalappara, in the recent rain related havoc in Malappuram. According to official figures, 13 more people are still missing at Kavalappara.
The search by the rescue team with 13 Hitachi excavators is to continue. So far, the rescue efforts have been successful with the team recovering five bodies on an average every day. The team expects to finish the mission in less than a week.
