2 dead in Himachal landslide, at least 25 people feared trapped under debris
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Himachal :Two people have died and at least 30 are feared trapped after a landslide in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday saw boulders tumbling onto a highway, hitting several vehicles, officials said. The people are trapped inside Himachal Road Transport Corporation bus on its way from Moorang to Haridwar.The landslide damaged the bus, a car, and a tipper truck. The truck driver managed to escape by jumping off the vehicle in the landslide that started at about 12.30pm. The accident took place 210 kilometers from state capital Shimla and 60 kilometers from district headquarters ReckongPeo on National Highway 5. Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur said the state government has requisitioned the National Disaster Response Force to carry out a search and rescue operation. “If the weather permits, I will go to the spot,” he said.Teams have rescued 11 people and sent them to Community Health Centre, Bhawanagar. The rescue team also retrieved two bodies. While one of the deceased has been identified as Rohit Kumar of Kyao village, the other is Vijay Kumar of Sujanpur village.Prime Minister NarendraModi spoke to the CM. “PM @narendramodi spoke to Himachal Pradesh CM @jairamthakurbjp regarding the situation in the wake of the landslide in Kinnaur. PM assured all possible support in the ongoing rescue operations,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.
Union home minister Amit Shah also spoke to the CM to take stock of the situation, officials said. He directed the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) to provide all assistance to the state government in rescue and relief operations.
Earlier in July, nine people were killed after a tourist vehicle was hit by a landslide at Batseri in Kinnaur. “The rescue teams have yet not been able to trace the bus buried in the rubble but there are reports that many of the passengers jumped off the vehicle and hid themselves behind the big boulders,” said deputy commissioner AbidHussainSadiq.
