Kerala landslides: Drones ferry food to relief workers

WAYANAD: As the challenging search for survivors and victims continues in the devastated landscape of landslide-ravaged Wayanad villages, authorities have turned to unmanned aerial vehicles to transport food packets to regions that still remain out of reach by traditional means.

In a bid to sustain the hundreds of personnel searching the treacherous terrain for signs of life, authorities employed modern drones capable of carrying food packets for up to 10 people at a time.

"A rapid food and water delivery system has been established to support rescue workers. Drone operations enabled the direct delivery of food to personnel operating heavy machinery, such as Hitachi and JCB equipment," according to an official release here on Monday.

The food for the rescue workers is being prepared at the Community Kitchen functioning at Meppadi Polytechnic, it said.

Under the supervision of the Food Safety Department, the Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association is preparing around 7,000 food packets daily, which are then distributed to those in need, the release added.

As per the government figures till Sunday evening, a total of 221 bodies and 166 body parts of the July 30 landslide victims had been recovered so far.

The number of missing people had gone down to 180 from the earlier 206 after the authorities were able to get in touch with some of them over the phone, they said on Sunday.