Malappuram: Relief for flood-hit from \'MARS\'

Malappuram: The ham radio operators played a crucial role in bringing relief to the people of Kavalappara which was struck by the catastrophic landslide.

The wireless repeater system of the Malabar Amateur Radio Society (MARS) in Malappuram district assisted the district authorities during the disaster when all mobile and landline systems were out of action at Kavalappara. The Nilambur tahsildar communicated with the district collector mainly relying on the ham radio system.

Within hours of the tragedy, MARS community coordinator Thajuddin Iringavur contacted the district collector who is also the head of the District Disaster Relief Authority. A radio station was set up at the collectorate under his direction. "It was a great help from the MARS team which helped us to connect with the flood-hit people," said collector Jaffer Malik. "All the network connections, including BSNL, were lost and electricity was also cut," he added. "Three persons from the MARS team approached our control room and one of them accompanied our rescue team to the field. Their control room was set up in the collectorate," he added.

On the same day, a few people, including Ashraf Kappad and Dr. Anwar from Mannarkkad, left for the disaster site at Kavalappara and established a parallel communication system from there and the Nilambur taluk office.

The wireless repeater station, which operated at Oorakam, Malappuram, had played a crucial role in the floods in 2018. At present, it can be linked to Malappuram, Palakkad, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Wayanad and other districts as well.