A youth who went on a trekking expedition on Monday morning at Malampuzha in Palakkad district in Kerala is held up in a hill cleft for the past 24 hours. With efforts by local forces to rescue him becoming unsuccessful, services of army personnel and mountaineers were sought by the district administration.
Twenty-three-year-old Babu R of Malampuzha is caught in the hill cleft, which is roughly estimated to the around 500 metres high from ground level. He has shared his picture sitting on the cleft through his mobile phone.
Though a Coast Guard helicopter made a rescue bid during the day, the operation had to be withdrawn as the helicopter could not descend to the narrow cleft. Subsequently, the district administration sought the help of the army and mountaineers. They were expected to reach the spot by late night. But owing to lack of light rescue might resume only by Wednesday evening.
Efforts to deliver food to him using an unmanned aerial vehicle was also being made. His health condition was also reported to be safe till the afternoon. His mobile phone turned off by afternoon possibly due to a lack of battery charge.
According to the local police, Babu along with three of his friends trekked the mountain at Cherad region of Malampuzha on Monday morning. While descending, Babu slipped and fell into the cleft, which is around 400 metres from the mountain top. He also suffered leg injuries. His friends could hardly do anything.
They later alerted the police and the Fire and Rescue Services. The Coast Guard and the NDRF personnel also joined the operation. A combined team was also trekking the mountains in a bid to supply food and water to him.
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Published 08 February 2022, 16:14 IST