Rescue personnel on Sunday recovered four more bodies from the debris of an old building near St Xavier’s church at Kuthiyathodu.
The Chengamanad police identified the deceased as Poulose, 50, son of Kunjuvareed of Madavana House; Jomon alias Jo, 55, of Elanjickal House, and his father Joseph, and Ouseph, 55, of Panikulam House.
The authorities had earlier recovered the bodies of James, 56, and Shouriar, 65, both natives of Kuthiyathodu. Around 300 persons had taken refuge at the church to escape from the floods.
The mishap happened on Thursday night when a portion of an old building near the church collapsed, trapping at least six persons under it. The police are yet to ascertain the exact reason for the collapse of the building.
“There are rumours that people started climbing on top of the building to escape from the floods, causing its collapse. We are examining whether more people were trapped under the debris,” said a police officer.
In Kuthiyathodu, many people are still stranded, as water in the area is yet to recede. Hence, the rescue personnel have been not able to carry out full-fledged operations there.
Major Ravishankar H.N. of the 120 Engineer Regiment, Pune, had led a 10-member team to excavate the bodies from under the debris. They had found the way to the place on Saturday with the help of locals. They recovered two bodies on the same day.
On Sunday evening, they returned to take out four more bodies buried under the debris. The operation was completed by around 9.30 p.m.
