World

Rescuers search for survivors after landslides in India—at least 45 dead

Rescuers in India combed through mud and debris Saturday in a frantic search for survivors as the death toll from multiple monsoon-triggered landslides reached 45, according to officials.

As many as 68 others were missing after heavy rains lashed India’s western coast, causing landslides that buried dozens of houses in hard-hit Raigad district, south of Mumbai. “Forty-three people have died in three landslides in the district… Rescue operations are continuing”, Sagar Pathak, a disaster management official in Raigad, told AFP. Fifty-three people were missing, he said, with many feared trapped under layers of mud following the accidents.

Earlier on Friday, state government spokesman Anirudha Ashtaputre told AFP that two others had died in Satara district due to landslides. Elsewhere in the state, up to 15 people were also missing, according to state authorities. The Navy, Army and Air Force sought to evacuate people stranded by flooding, but their operations were hampered by landslides blocking roads, including the main highway between Mumbai and Goa.

Water levels rose to 3.5 metres (12 feet) on Thursday in areas of Chiplun, a city 250 kilometres (160 miles) from Mumbai, following 24 hours of uninterrupted rain that caused the Vashishti river to overflow, submerging roads and homes.

ARTICLE: PAUL MURDOCH

MANAGING EDITOR: CARSON CHOATE
PHOTO CREDITS: TIMES OF MALTA

The following two tabs change content below.
Paul, 37, is from Scotland in the UK, but currently lives and works in Bangkok. Paul has worked in different industries such as telemarketing, retail, hospitality, farming, insurance, and teaching, where he works now. He teaches at an all-girls High School in Bangkok. “It’s a lot of work, but I love my job.” Paul has an active interest in politics. His reason for writing for FBA is to offer people the facts and allow them to make up their own minds. Whilst he believes opinion columns have their place, it is also important that people can have accurate news with no bias.

Leave a Reply