Hopes of finding landslide survivors fade in Kerala

Hopes of finding survivors began to fade as hundreds of rescuers worked through sludge and rocks and pulled out bodies from debris in the hills of India's Kerala state on July 31, a day after 167 people were killed in monsoon landslides.

Steady rain that intensified as the day progressed and the rising water level in a local river hampered rescue efforts, with a temporary bridge built to connect the worst affected area of Mundakkai being washed away.

The weather department has forecast more heavy rain over the next 24 hours, Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said, urging people to be on "high alert".

Heavy rain in Kerala, one of India's most popular tourist destinations, led to landslides in its Wayanad district early on July 30, sending torrents of mud, water and tumbling boulders downhill, and burying or sweeping people to their deaths as they slept.

It was the worst disaster in the state since deadly floods in 2018.

Experts said the area had received heavy rain in the last two weeksthat softened the soil. Extremely heavy rainfall on July 29 then triggered the landslides.