Maharashtra: 12 Killed, Many Trapped In Landslide As Rescue Efforts Continue

MUMBAI: At least 12 people were killed in a landslide at a tribal village late Wednesday in Raigad district Maharashtra. Even as relief workers conducted search and rescue operations amid heavy rainfall in the area, one rescuer reportedly died of cardiac arrest.

According to reports, 127 people are still feared trapped under the soil and debris on Thursday afternoon after a landslide hit Irsalwadi, a tribal hamlet in Maharashtra’s Raigad district late on Wednesday night. The region has been continually lashed by heavy rains over the last 24 hours.

Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde announced ex-gratia relief of Rs. 5 lakh to the kin of the deceased persons. Chief Minister Shinde reached the site and spoke to affected people as well as personnel engaged in rescue operations. He said that the village was not included in the list of landslide-prone villages.

Teams led by the NDRF were busy in search and rescue operations, said Devendra Fadnavis. However, the search and rescue personnel at the disaster site were facing major hurdles due to the difficult hilly terrain of the area, according to Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and officials at the site.

Irshalwadi, where the landslide hit, is a tribal village without access by a pucca road and the nearest town is Chowk village on Mumbai-Pune Highway. A small approach road that leads to hutments in the area has been slippery from the incessant rains, an official said.

Taking heavy machinery like earth-movers and excavators there is not possible. While two helicopters have been kept in readiness for the rescue operation, they are not being able to take-off until the weather is clear, the official said.

Mumbai also witnessed incessant rains yesterday, with close to 100 mm of rain recorded in the city in the past 24 hours. According to the IMD, rainfall between 64.5 mm and 115.5 mm is categorised as heavy rains, and the deluge experienced in the city over the past 24 hours qualifies for this category.

An orange alert was issued in the area by the IMD for Thursday, while a red alert has been issued for Thane till Thursday. Districts of Palghar and Raigad are on a red alert for Thursday and Friday.

According to an anganwadi worker, who is used to visiting the houses in the area, there were 45 houses at the site and 43 of them were affected by the landslide

The woman claimed that there were 229 people, including 25 children up to six years of age, living in the houses hit by the landslide, adding that the incident has left her shattered.

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