Emergency workers on Sunday (July 12, 2026) recovered the body of the lone missing person following a devastating debris slip at a tunnel construction site at Kalladi in Wayanad’s Meppadi, taking the death toll in the disaster to eight.

The deceased was identified as Bikram Singh Rana, a project manager from Himachal Pradesh.

Rana’s body was recovered on the sixth day of the search during extensive operations in Zone II. It was found in an area where iron debris had accumulated following the disaster.

Officials said that with the recovery of his body, all missing people had now been accounted for after the massive debris slip struck near the entrance to the under-construction Wayanad twin-tunnel road project on July 7.

After his relatives identified the body, it was shifted to the Vythiri Taluk Hospital for postmortem examination.

Following the procedure, it will be shifted to the Kozhikode Government Medical College Hospital for embalming before being repatriated to his native place.

At least one reported dead, seven are missing, and seven are hospitalised at Kalladi near Meppadi in Wayanad following a massive mudslide triggered by torrential monsoon rains near the entrance of the under-construction Wayanad tunnel road (Anakkampoyil–Kalladi–Meppadi) project linking Kozhikode to Wayanad on Tuesday (July 7, 2026). A major rescue operation is underway.

The CM has said that two Ministers, A.P. Anil Kumar and T. Siddique, are leaving for Wayanad immediately.

​The incident occurred near the Meenakshi Bridge at Kalladi. Officials said rescue operations were underway. At least five people have been pulled alive from the debris and shifted to a hospital. The rescues took place near the temporary quarters used by the tunnel project’s labourers. Work on the tunnel road had already been suspended after the authorities issued a stop memo in view of the heavy monsoon rains.

Also Read: Wayanad mudslide LIVE updates

According to eyewitnesses, a concrete retaining wall built to reinforce the hillside collapsed under the pressure of sudden heavy rainfall, sending a torrent of mud and debris onto the site.

​While no fatalities have been officially confirmed, authorities fear that more workers or heavy machinery operators may still be trapped beneath the collapsed wall and debris. Several vehicles have been found crushed and buried.  Officials are currently cross-referencing worker logs to determine the exact number of people unaccounted for. Residents of nearby houses are being evacuated as a precaution.

​Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) along with the local police and Fire and Rescue services are actively engaged in the rescue operation. The incident occurred close to a cluster of residential houses and holiday homestays.

​Rescue efforts are being severely hampered by heavy rain and thick mud, which are complicating the use of earth-moving equipment.

Wayanad District Collector D.R. Meghashree and other senior officials have arrived at the site to oversee the rescue operations.