Kerala lorry driver's body found in Karnataka's Shrirur after more than 70 days of search ops
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah paid condolences to Arjun's family and said they made all efforts to trace the lorry driver.
After more than 70 days of search operations, the body of Kerala lorry driver Arun, who went missing during Karnataka’s Shrirur landslide incident, was found. Meanwhile, two more people affected by the landslide are yet to be traced and search operations are going on.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah paid condolences to Arjun's family and said they made all efforts to trace the lorry driver. In an X post, he wrote, “The state government has recovered the body of Kerala truck driver Arjun, along with the truck, which was buried under the debris following the landslide in Shirur, Uttara Kannada district. From the start, rescuing Arjun and everyone swept away by the river was our priority. However, the fast-flowing waters and relentless rains made the operation impossible. Unfortunately, the rescue efforts couldn’t succeed, and many succumbed in the tragedy. I share in the sorrow of this unfortunate event.”
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He also said that the driver’s body, along with the truck, was stuck under the mud, which made it difficult for authorities. “Some bodies were recovered earlier, and today, we finally retrieved the driver’s body along with the truck buried under the mud,” added Siddaramaiah.
On July 16, a huge hill collapsed on houses in Shirur village of Ankola taluk in Uttara Kannada district. Several vehicles parked beside the highway to visit the hotels were also damaged, along with drivers who fell into mud and boulders, and Arjun is believed to be one of them.
Nine deaths have been recorded in this incident so far, and the Karnataka and Kerala governments collectively conducted search operations along with NDRF teams. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan also wrote to Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah earlier and requested swift search operations to find Arjun.