NEW DELHI: Heavy rain made about 10 per cent stronger by human-caused climate change triggered the landslides that killed more than 200 people in India's southern state of Kerala last month, a team of international s
Rescuers work as a rescue operation is underway after landslides hit Chooralmala in Wayanad district in the southern state of Kerala, India, on Aug 1, 2024. The landslides on Jul 30 in the coastal state's Wayanad region were its worst disaster since 2018, when floods killed more than 400 people.
Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had blamed unexpectedly heavy rainfall for the casualties, saying the region received 572 millimetres of rain over the preceding 48 hours, more than double the 204 millimetres forecast. "The increase in climate change-driven rainfall found in this study is likely to increase the potential number of landslides that could be triggered in the future," it said.Minimising deforestation and quarrying, reinforcing susceptible slopes, and building retaining structures to protect vulnerable areas were some of the other measures it recommended to prevent similar disasters in future.
"In addition to mitigation, adaptation is critical", said Maja Vahlberg, one of the authors of the study, calling for more stringent assessment of landslides and better early warning and evacuation systems.
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