Landslides triggered by torrential rains in India’s western state of Maharashtra have killed 10 people and many are feared buried under debris, officials said on Thursday.
State Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted that a team of 60 rescuers and trained trackers had been deployed to help rescue people trapped by the landslide late Wednesday night. He added that severe weather conditions have hampered rescue operations and authorities have sent medical teams to help the injured.
While 75 people have been rescued, many are still trapped, an official told the Press Trust of India news agency.
Flooding in India has caused the river to lap the walls of the Taj Mahal, raising fears of damage
The landslide hit Arshalwadi village in Raigarh district and 17 out of 50 houses there were buried.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde arrived at the site on Thursday and told reporters that “the priority now is to evacuate people trapped under the debris.”
The India Meteorological Department has put Maharashtra on alert as the state is lashed by incessant rains this week. The rains have disrupted life for many in the state, including in the capital Mumbai, where authorities closed schools on Thursday.
Relief workers dig a grave to bury a victim of a landslide in India’s western state of Maharashtra on July 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
According to local media, local train services have been affected due to water flowing inside the stations and over the tracks. Roads have been submerged, snarling traffic and stranding commuters, as the National Disaster Response Force has deployed teams across the state.
During the record monsoon rains in India, more than 100 people died, roads collapsed, houses collapsed
Record monsoon rains have killed more than 100 people in northern India over the past two weeks, officials said, as the rains washed away roads and collapsed houses.
The India Meteorological Agency said monsoon rains across the country have been about 2 percent above normal this year.
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India regularly experiences severe flooding during the monsoon season, which runs between June and September and brings most of South Asia’s annual rainfall. Rainfall is important for rain-fed crops grown during the season but often causes heavy losses.
Scientists say climate change and global warming are causing the monsoon to become more erratic, causing frequent landslides and flash floods in India’s Himalayan north.
Source by [Fox News]
