The body of a person believed to be trapped in a landslip at Puthumala, near Meppadi, on August 8, was recovered on Sunday. It was initially identified as that of Annayan, 54, a storekeeper of the Harrisons Malayalam plantations, Puthumala division. Annayan reportedly went missing in the flood while he was measuring the rain gauge of the estate.
The body was identified by his relatives and Meppadi panchayat officials, Wayanad Subcollector N.S.K. Umesh said. However, confusion arose later when the relatives of Gourishankar, another missing person, raised claim to the body. Mr. Umesh said that a DNA test would be done to identify the body. The body was found near Soochipara waterfalls at a depth of 1,000 ft below the Puthumala area, Mr. Umesh said. It was found around 6 km from the original landslip area.
NGRI to search today
A six-member team of the National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, would search Puthumala on Monday with ground-penetrating radar. A specialised team of personnel from the NDRF, Fire and Rescue Services and Forest Department would search Soochipara. Eleven bodies have been retrieved from the debris so far.