Hopes of finding survivors began to fade as hundreds of rescuers worked through slush and rocks and pulled out bodies from debris in the hills of India¡¯s Kerala state on Wednesday, a day after at least 167 people were killed in monsoon landslides.

Steady rain that intensified as the day progressed and the rising water level in a local river hampered the rescue, with a temporary bridge built to connect the worst affected area of Mundakkai being washed away.

The weather department has forecast more heavy rain over the next 24 hours, Kerala¡¯s Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said and urged people to be on ¡°high alert.¡±