A group of tourists from Malappuram came to the rescue of those who had met with an accident when their car fell into a gorge near the Idukki dam on the Idukki-Thodupuzha road. The tourists from Koottilangadi in Malappuram turned savours to a family that came face to face with death after being involved in an accident at a deserted place. The footage of their rescue efforts, which were extremely strenuous, began to circulate widely on social media. The details of the incident that occurred on Sunday were revealed after this.
There were two men and a woman in the car that had been involved in the accident. The tourists from Malappuram said that the video was shot by someone standing on the road during the rescue.
The tourists' version of the incident:
"The incident happened near Thodupuzha while we were on the way back after visiting the Idukki dam. Our vehicle was blocked by autorickshaw drivers who said that a car had fallen into the gorge. They said that although many vehicles were waved down, none had stopped. The autorickshaw drivers asked us if we could help in rescuing those who had met with the accident," one of the tourists said.
"When we got out of our vehicle and surveyed the area, we realised that it was impossible to climb down to the place where the car had fallen. We looked for a thick piece of rope to slide down to the place, but it was not available. It was impossible to contact the Fire and Rescue Services, too, as there was no mobile phone range. We were truly in a helpless situation.
"Since there was no other way out, we decided to tie together the dhoties we were wearing. Those who stood on the crest of the gradient held on to it. Two of us slid down to the place. We took the accident victims out of the car and brought them to the road with extreme difficulty. The area was slushy as it had rained, and the shattered glass panes of the car lay in pieces. We brought all of them to safety, took them to the hospital, and informed the police before leaving," the members of the team said.
