Oman

Wayanad tragedy: HM offers condolences

 
Muscat: His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik on Wednesday sent a message to Droupadi Murmu offering condolence and sympathy to the victims of the landslide and floods in Wayanad, southern state of India.

Nearly 1,000 people had been rescued from the hillside villages and tea and cardamom estates in Wayanad district and 225 were still missing, authorities said on Wednesday. They said at least 200 people died and 195 were injured. Heavy rain in Kerala, one of India's most attractive tourist destinations, led to the landslides early on Tuesday, sending torrents of mud, water and tumbling boulders downhill and burying or sweeping people away to their deaths as they slept. It was the worst disaster in the state since deadly floods in 2018. Experts said the area had been receiving heavy rain in the last two weeks which had softened the soil and that extremely heavy rainfall on Monday triggered the landslides.