A seven-year-old boy died and four of his family members were injured after a landslide triggered by rainfall crashed into their house in Meghalaya’s Ri-Bhoi district on Monday, police said on Tuesday.
The incident occurred around 4am at Umlamphlang village under the Mawhati constituency when a portion of a rain-soaked hillside collapsed onto the residence of Stolin Khymdeit (father of the deceased) as the family was asleep.
The deceased identified as Pynhun Umbah (7), sustained severe injuries and died on the spot, police said.
His father, Khymdeit (40), and three siblings—Pynskhem Umbah (16), Ebani Umbah (13) and Saphira Umbah (8)—were also injured in the incident.
They were admitted to Umtrai Primary Health Centre (PHC) for treatment, police said.
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Ri-Bhoi superintendent of police, Giri Prasad M said preliminary inquiry revealed that the landslide was caused by heavy overnight rainfall.
“Today early morning around 4 am, due to heavy rainfall, there was a landslide that fell over the house of Shri Stolin Khymdeit at Umlamphlang village while the family was sleeping. One of his sons, late Pynhun Umbah, aged seven years, received severe injuries and died on the spot, while the father and three other children sustained injuries and were shifted to Umtrai PHC for medical observation,” the SP said.
{{/usCountry}}“Today early morning around 4 am, due to heavy rainfall, there was a landslide that fell over the house of Shri Stolin Khymdeit at Umlamphlang village while the family was sleeping. One of his sons, late Pynhun Umbah, aged seven years, received severe injuries and died on the spot, while the father and three other children sustained injuries and were shifted to Umtrai PHC for medical observation,” the SP said.
{{/usCountry}}Police said an inquest was conducted in the presence of the family members and local witnesses. The family, however, declined a post-mortem examination, declining suspicion of foul play behind the child’s death.
“The family members strongly opposed the post-mortem examination and submitted a written prayer seeking exemption before the executive magistrate, stating there was no foul play,” he said.
The executive manager granted exemption from the post-mortem examination, and the child’s body was handed over to the family for the last rites.
The incident comes amid continuous rainfall across several parts of Meghalaya, with authorities closely monitoring the situation as persistent showers have heightened the risk of landslides and flooding in vulnerable areas.