Burliyar, Oct 25: Heavy overnight rain on Friday triggered landslides at more than 10 locations along the Coonoor-Mettupalayam National Highway in Tamil Nadu's Nilgiris district, killing a government bus driver, injuring the conductor, washing away a house in Barliyar village and bringing traffic on the affected stretch to a complete halt, ANI reported on Saturday.

Source: ANI via LatestLY

A Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus travelling from Coonoor towards Coimbatore was hit at Burliyar in the early hours of Saturday when soil, rocks and an uprooted tree fell on the vehicle, according to The Hindu's reporting. Only the driver and conductor were on board at the time; three passengers had got down earlier at Kurumpady. The driver, Janagaraj, 55, of Katteri in Nilgiris district, was killed. Conductor Kesavan was pulled out after a prolonged rescue and admitted to Mettupalayam Government Hospital with serious injuries.

Burliyar recorded 250 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending at 7 a.m. on Saturday, categorised as extremely heavy rainfall, according to the Nilgiris district administration figures cited by The Hindu. More than 300 people stranded along the ghat section, including 241 students and 25 teachers from two schools in Kerala who were on a tour of Udhagamandalam, were brought to safety in Mettupalayam, where they were accommodated in wedding halls and a school and given breakfast, with medical teams on alert. A mini goods vehicle also fell into a ravine at the landslide spot; its driver got out and was taken to hospital in Coonoor.

Source: The Hindu

ANI reported that a house in Barliyar village was washed away in the heavy rain; its occupants escaped unharmed but lost their home, belongings and a two-wheeler, and appealed to the district administration for relief. Rainwater also entered houses in the Vandipettai and Agraharam areas, a car was crushed and six two-wheelers and several other vehicles were damaged, the agency said.

Nilgiris District Collector Lakshmi Bhavya Tanneeru and Superintendent of Police Brinda inspected the landslide-hit locations. Clearance operations by disaster response teams, fire and rescue personnel and highways department officials began on Saturday morning. The Collector said the affected roads would reopen for regular traffic only after the debris is cleared and the stability of the stretches is assessed, and asked the public to avoid travelling on the affected roads unless it is an emergency. Stranded passengers were also evacuated to camps in the Coonoor area, public schools there were opened to accommodate affected people, and the district emergency helpline 1077 remains available for assistance, ANI reported.