Himachal Pradesh rains: At least 60 lives lost, more landslides reported

Shimla: Over the past week, heavy rains and landslides have claimed at least 60 lives in Himachal Pradesh.

The death toll in the Summer Hill landslide increased by one on Wednesday, reported NDTV.

So far 13 bodies have been recovered from the debris in Summer Hill, five from Fagil and two from Krishna Nagar, said an official. Several others are feared buried in the debris of a temple that collapsed on Monday.

Another landslide was reported in Shimla's Summer Hill area this morning, but no casualty figures are reported yet.

In Krishna Nagar a landslide washed away around eight houses last evening, killing two people. Several other houses were vacated.

Heavy rains battered Himachal Pradesh since Sunday, triggering landslides and cloudbursts that blocked several roads and led to house collapse incidents.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the Army along with police and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) resumed rescue operations at Summer Hill around 6 am, Deputy Commissioner of Shimla Aditya Negi told PTI.

The rescue operations were suspended on Monday night following heavy rainfall.

According to the state emergency operation centre, the state has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 7,171 crore since the onset of monsoon on June 24 till August 14.

A total of 170 incidents of cloudburst and landslide have been reported in the state this monsoon season and about 9,600 houses damaged.

(with PTI inputs)