Watch: Several houses crumble down after landslide wrecks havoc in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla; locals move to safety

Incessant rainfall caused several instances of landslide in the state, one of which, swept off nearly 6 houses in Shimla.

Published on: Aug 15, 2023, 20:11:24 IST

By HT News Desk

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Several buildings, including houses and a slaughterhouse, on Tuesday crumbled down in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla in instance of landslide due to incessant rainfall. Locals in the area are moving to safety fearing their house could collapse next as they are situated adjacent to where the landslide took place. NDRF and SDRF teams are carrying out rescue operation in the area.

Rescue workers search for people feared missing in landslides following torrential rains, in Shimla, (PTI)

"We received information at 5 pm that around 5-6 houses have collapsed. NDRF, SDRF teams are present at the spot. Rescue operation is underway," Aditya Negi, deputy commissioner, Shimla, told news agency PTI.

According to chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, two people died so far in the incident.

"We are moving out of our house for our own safety as the incident happened nearby," a local was quoted as saying by PTI.

A slaughterhouse nearby is also reported to have collapsed in the landslide.

A local councillor said that residents were asked to vacate their houses as soon as some cracks started to appear and their number increased with time. "We noticed some cracks in the houses, others also gathered at the spot. We saw that the cracks were increasing and requested the residents to vacate their houses. Suddenly we saw several houses collapse. Nearly 20-25 houses have been vacated and around 50 people have been rescued and shifted to safe places," councillor Bittu Panna told news agency ANI.

At least 60 people died in the state after heavy rainfall triggering cloudbursts, landslides and road blocks. According to CM Sukhu, the toll is likely to shoot up. Solan, Shimla, Mandi and Hamirpur are among the worst-hit districts in the state.

“A total of 60 people have died in the state so far due to incessant rainfall. Educational Institutes will be closed tomorrow," he said.

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HT News Desk
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