Kerala landslides – latest: At least 70 killed and hundreds feared trapped after landslides in southern India

Dozens have died and hundreds more are feared trapped after heavy rainfall led to major landslides in the hills of India ’s southern Kerala state.

So far the death toll stands at 70, according to Rahul Gandhi, the leader of India’s opposition and a former Wayanad MP.

Another 70 people have been rescued with injuries, state health minister Veena George said. Many people are likely to have been washed away in the Chaliyar river, the Indian Express newspaper reported.

The landslides tore through hillside villages in the picturesque Wayanad region.

Rescue operations have been hampered by the fact that the landslides have destroyed the main bridge in the region. The army has been called in to build a temporary bridge connecting the disaster site to the nearest town of Chooralmala.

“The situation is serious. The government has pressed all agencies into [the] rescue [effort],” state forest minister A K Saseendran told Reuters.

Videos showed relief personnel making their way through rocks and uprooted trees as muddy water gushed through, with many houses destroyed.

The India Meteorological Department has forecast extremely heavy rain to continue in the state through the day.