An Indian Coast Guard (ICG) team consisting of 35 personnel is engaged in disaster relief operations in the landslide-hit Wayanad, in coordination with the State government, Army, Navy, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), fire and rescue personnel, local police, and various volunteer groups.
The personnel led by Deputy Commandant Vivek Kumar Dixit from the ICG District Headquarters (Kerala and Mahe) and the ICG Station, Beypore, have been conducting rescue operations at Chooralmala and nearby villages since July 30. The team has been assisting civilians stranded in the disaster zone, facilitating their relocation to safe locations and relief camps. They are also actively involved in clearing debris in search of survivors and missing persons and providing on-site first-aid to the injured, says an official release.
To augment the ground efforts, an Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) has been deployed from Coast Guard Air Enclave, Kozhikode, and has been kept on standby for augmenting air efforts in rescue as well as air-dropping of relief materials. Additionally, ICG ship Abhinav is being dispatched from Kochi to Beypore, carrying life-saving equipment, relief materials, medicines, and freshwater. These supplies will be distributed to various disaster-relief camps.
