Woman killed in landslide, 4 others feared buried in Himachal's Kullu

A woman was killed in a landslide while four other members of her family are feared to have been buried under the debris in the Nirmand area of Himachal Pradesh's Kullu district.

Two houses were completely damaged following the landslide triggered by heavy rains around 1:30 am on Monday night in the Sharmani village of Ghatu panchayat in the district. One body has been recovered and four other members of the family are feared trapped in the rubble, said gram panchayat pradhan Bhoga Ram on Tuesday.

The deceased woman has been identified as Brasiti Devi, wife of Shiv Ram While Chunni Lal, Anju, Jagriti and Pupesh are still missing and search operations are underway in the village, he said.

Three people -- Dharam Das, his wife Kala Devi and Shiv Ram -- sustained serious injuries and were rushed to Nirmand hospitals by the villagers.

He said that the administration and the office of sub-divisional magistrate have been informed about the tragedy, and the villagers were engaged in search and rescue work since night.

A total 370 people have died in rain-related incidents and road accidents in the state since the onset of monsoon on June 20 till September 8.

Out of the 370 fatalities, 205 were due to rain-related incidents, which include 43 deaths from landslides, 17 from cloudbursts, and nine from flash floods. Additionally, 41 people are still reported missing, while road accidents have accounted for 165 deaths, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC).

A maximum of 15 people died in 22 incidents of landslides in Kullu till Monday.