Several vehicles, including a bus carrying over 40 passengers, are buried under the debris from landslide in Himachal Pradesh, India.
Updated
The following written content from BBC
At least 13 people have died and dozens more are trapped under debris after a landslide in a Himalayan district in northern India.
Falling boulders swept a truck, a bus and other vehicles from a stretch of highway in Himachal Pradesh state.
Rescue operations are being hampered by rocks that are continuing to fall, officials say.
Several deadly landslides have hit India in recent months during an unusually heavy monsoon season.
Wednesday’s landslide occurred on a highway in Kinnaur district. Rescuers rummaged through sludge and debris late into the night to reach trapped victims.
More than 200 members of the military, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and border police were taking part in the rescue efforts, authorities said.
Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) deputy commandment Dharminder Thakur told BBC Hindi that “13 people have been rescued so far and about 25-30 are still missing”.
“We were informed that about four to six vehicles were trapped. By 21:30 [or 1600G on Wednesday], we managed to clear most of the debris but were unable to locate one of the buses,” he added.
Falling boulders have buried a truck, a passenger bus and other vehicles, according to local reports.
Police and local officials have begun rescue efforts, said Jairam Thakur, chief minister of Himachal Pradesh.
There have been several deadly landslides in India in recent months during an unusually heavy monsoon.
It’s still unclear what caused Wednesday’s landslide – it happened on a highway in Kinnaur district. Local reports say five people have been rescued, but around 30 others are still trapped.
Indo-Tibetan Border Police teams have been dispatched to help with rescue efforts and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has also been put on alert.
Nine people were killed last month in Himachal Pradesh when falling rocks hit their vehicle. At least 136 people died in landslides in the western state of Maharashtra recently after heavy rains flooded hundreds of villages and swept away homes. Read more from BBC
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