Kerala landslides horror: Indian expat, who left UAE for brother’s wedding, and four family members dead

The death toll from the landslides in the wee hours of July 30 has hit 413, according to local media reports. As many as 152 people are still reported missing.

Gulf News spoke to Suhail, who also worked in the UAE, when his employer Sanish CS visited him in Kozhikode district in Kerala where he is under treatment after suffering injuries in the disaster.

Suhail’s youngest brother Ishaq, who was pulled out from under the debris after 12 hours, and his wife Shahla, who survived with minor injuries, are with him while his mother Rabiya, who sustained severe head injuries, is under treatment in Dr Moopen’s Medical College in Wayanad.

Still reeling from the shock and grief, Suhail recalled the horror of losing his loved ones and house. He said both Sinan and him were working for Sanish’s spices and roastery store in a mall in Sharjah and lived with his family. The brothers had left the UAE in May because of Suhail’s wedding back home on May 18.

“We never expected this twist of fate,” said a distraught Suhail.

He said both of them had cancelled their residence visas because the roastery had been sold with a plan to reopen it in another location.

“We decided to take a long break after the wedding and come back on our new visas. Sinan was supposed to return later this month while I had decided to stay back for a little longer.”

The ill-fated night

Suhail recounted being awakened by a loud noise and his wife’s cries on that ill-fated night.

“We were on the first floor of our house when the walls collapsed, and mud and water gushed in. We realised our house was being swept away.”

Suhail, Shahla, Suhail’s aunt and two of her children managed to get out through a collapsed door on the first floor. “Luckily, we found that gap and I managed to get all of them out. My aunt and three kids had come to stay with us because we had felt it wasn’t safe to stay in her place during the heavy rains. But we couldn’t rescue one of her sons. His body was recovered later.”

Meanwhile, the rest of the family members who slept on the ground floor had been hit harder. “My parents, brothers and both grandfathers were on the ground floor. Their rooms were pushed upward by the impact of the landslide.”

Although he was injured, Suhail said he managed to pull his mother out of the debris. “Her head was bleeding. I found a broken cot and made her lie down on that.”

Frantic, but failed rescue attempts

However, he was helpless when it came to rescuing his younger brothers.

“The concrete beams and roof had collapsed on top of them. Though he was stuck under the debris, Ishaq was not severely injured and he could breathe properly.”

However, that was not the case with Sinan. He had got trapped in between the debris. “His neck was stuck between a concrete beam and a window. I tried my best to pull him out. But when I tried to climb on to the concrete debris, it was crushing him more. He couldn’t bear the pain and he told me to stop it. I even tried to pull him out by his hair, but in vain. We realised we can’t do anything. He kept talking for around 10 minutes. He understood he wouldn’t make it. When he started sinking, he told me to take care of dad and mom and everyone else. Had there been some other people to help me, I would have saved my brother. I was fated to witness his death before my eyes,” the heartbroken brother said while breaking down in tears in between.

Father’s body not identified

Suhail had no clue where his father Abdul Nasar and his grandfathers Moideen Kutty (paternal grandfather) and Bapputty (maternal grandfather) had been swept away. “My grandfathers’ bodies were recovered later. They were buried in our local mosque’s graveyard. We still haven’t identified our father’s body. He is now believed dead. Authorities have taken DNA samples from my uncle to identify his body.”

A metal rod had pierced through Suhail’s left leg, fracturing his ankle joint. He underwent a surgery in Government Medical College in Manjeri and later got transferred to Government Medical College, Kozhikode. After discharge earlier this week, he moved into his cousin’s house in Kozhikode so that he could continue the follow up treatment there.

Mental trauma

Though he did not suffer serious physical injuries, 17-year-old Ishaq is mentally shattered after spending 12 hours under the debris, next to the dead body of his elder brother Sinan. “He was deeply frightened and kept crying. Rescue workers reached our place after several hours. Ishad was pulled out by the National Disaster Response Force after 12 hours,” said Suhail.

He said both of them were given counselling at the hospital. “But we are unable to tide over this unimaginable tragedy that has struck us. We are worried about our mother. We have no idea what the future holds for us. Our entire town is gone. We have lost hundreds of our loved ones in our area. We don’t even have phones or albums to see our old photos to cherish our memories.”

They are family

Sanish said his and his brother and business partner Sajin CS’ family members in the UAE were shattered after the tragedy that struck Suhail and Sinan. “They are like my brothers, my left hand and right hand. One is gone and their family has suffered this incredible tragedy. It is unbearable for us. My kids are very close to them as they used to take good care of them. My 13-year-old son is still crying every day. I am offering all the support I can, but they need to start their lives from the scratch and need mental, physical and financial support.”

His sister-in-law Salma Sajin, who shared the brothers’ photos with Gulf News, said the brothers are like family members. “We never saw them as employees. They are like our brothers. I have cooked for them and even fed them when I was feeding the rest of my family members. This tragedy has shattered all of us. I have been struggling to sleep.”