Mangaluru, May 30: The death toll has risen to three in the tragic landslide that struck a house in Hittilukodi Koppala, Montepadvu of Manjanadi village.
The landslide occurred around 4 am at Montepadavu, within the Ullal limits. At the time of the incident, six members of the family were inside the house: Prema Poojary (grandmother), Kanthappa Poojary (grandfather), their son Seetharam, his wife Ashwini, and their children Aryan (3) and Aarush (2).
The landslide occurred around 4 AM on Friday morning. Prema (58), wife of the house owner Kanthappa Poojary, died on the spot. Kanthappa’s daughter-in-law Ashwini and her two young children were buried under the collapsed debris. By noon, rescue teams managed to retrieve Aryan’s body, but he had already passed away. Later, both Ashwini and her other child Ayush were pulled out, but Ayush was also declared dead. Ashwini has been admitted to the hospital.
Later, personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) arrived and took over the rescue operations. The heavy rainfall and constant landslides made the rescue effort extremely difficult. After a continuous 11-hour operation, Ashwini was rescued, but the children were declared dead.
Ashwini regained consciousness in the hospital and asked about her children’s whereabouts. Due to her critical condition, hospital staff have not yet informed her about their deaths.
Her husband Seetharam and father-in-law Kanthappa Poojary also sustained serious injuries and are undergoing treatment at the hospital.