TAP TO UNMUTE A view of the fire in Kurangani hills of Tamil Nadu's Theni district | Photo Credit: ANI

Theni (Tamil Nadu): Ten of the 37 trekkers, who got trapped in a massive forest fire on Sunday on the Kurangani hills in Tamil Nadu's Theni district, have died, ANI reported on Monday. Of the ten dead, four are women, four men and a child. Meanwhile, search operations continued and 27 trekkers have been rescued so far - 10 of them have sustained minor injuries, while eight have suffered serious injuries.

While Tamil Nadu fire and forest department officials are carrying out the rescue operations, the Indian Air Force is also pitching in on the directives of Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who was approached for help by state Chief Minister K Palaniswami. ANI reported this morning that 16 commandos of the Garud Commando Force and four choppers from the IAF, with one of them on standby, were taking part in the search and rescue operations.

"16 Garuds walked up and reached there at 3 am. They rescued few people at night. At the moment, the Garuds are trying to lift the dead bodies to a higher plain. Two helicopters will bring the bodies down. One helicopter has doused the fire," Sitharaman said.

Theni District Collector Mariam Pallavi Baldev said last night, “A total of 37 people in two separate groups reached Kolukkumalai for trekking on Saturday. They camped in an estate and were returning when the fire broke out in the forest. 15 people have received burn injuries.”

State Health Minister C Vijayabaskar, in a tweet, said separately last night that the trekkers, who had been rescued, were being treated for injuries at the government hospital in Bodinayakanur in the district in southern Tamil Nadu.

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The rescue operation had been affected as night had fallen and wild animals had also started leaving the area where the fire was raging in a vast stretch, officials said. While initial reports said those trapped were students, officials later added that the victims, belonging to two groups, were young women and men and three children who were on a mountain climbing/trekking training.

The fire situation looked very serious but could be controlled, an official had told PTI on condition of anonymity. He also said the trekkers had not taken the permission or security for going to the deep forest area.

As the enormity of the situation unfolded, Palaniswami last night said rescue operations were underway on a war footing and the state had sought two helicopters from the Defence Ministry. His deputy O Panneerselvem, Forest Minister Dindigul C Srinivasan and top officials were overseeing the operations, on his request, he told reporters in Salem. Stating that the cause of the fire was not known, he said efforts would be taken to strengthen the forest area security further.

Sitharaman remained in touch with the District Collector and directed the Indian Air Force to coordinate in the rescue operations. In a series of tweets, she said on Sunday that two helicopters of the Indian Air Force from its Sulur base near Coimbatore were being sent to assist in the rescue operations. "Responding to the request from the Hon @CMOTamilNadu on the forest -fire related issue -20 students are caught in Kurangani, Theni district. Instructed @IAF_MCC to help in rescue and evacuation. The Southern Command is in touch with the Collector of Theni," she said in a tweet. In another tweet around 7 pm, Sitharaman said she spoke to the Theni District Collector who informed her that 10-15 students were making their way to the foothills.

A medical team had been sent to the spot and employees of a nearby private tea estate were also assisting in the rescue operations, she said quoting the Collector.

Baldev, who met the rescued persons and spoke to them, later told reporters that a 12-member group from Tiruppur and Erode and another comprising 24 people from Chennai, on a trekking camp, reached Kurangani hills on Saturday. They included 25 women and three children. After staying overnight at an estate in Kozhukumalai, they started their return journey to the plains on Sunday when they heard about the sudden forest fire and got separated while attempting to find a safe way.

Kurangani-Kozhukumalai hills are located near Bodinayakanur, about 40 km from here. Officials of forest, fire, police, medical and rescue teams had gone to the spot and were being assisted by the local tribals and employees of nearby tea estates, Baldev said, adding the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel were also engaged in the operations.

"It is dark, it is a hilly place and it is not a motorable road. After a particular distance, we have to go by walk and there is a situation where we need to lift and carry the injured physically. It will definitely take time," she said when asked about the time-frame for rescuing all.

District Superintendent of Police V Baskaran and revenue and forest officials were also overseeing the operations. Earlier, a report from Coimbatore, quoting police, said two IAF 'Sarang' helicopters from Sulur have left for Kurangani forest.

(With PTI inputs)