Himachal rain fury: Mandi landslide toll mounts to 7; roads, schools shut

• Fresh landslides in Himachal kill 7 in Mandi; 2 feared dead in Kullu

• Colleges, schools shut till 7 Sept; 1,162 roads blocked, Shimla-Kalka trains cancelled

• Since June: 341 deaths, Rs 3,525 crore losses from rain-related disasters

Fresh devastation due to rain was witnessed in Himachal Pradesh where rescue personnel recovered four more bodies from the debris of a landslide in Mandi district while two persons, including an NDRF jawan, were feared dead as two houses collapsed in Kullu district, officials said on Wednesday.

In view of the inclement weather, all government and private colleges and schools will remain closed in the state until 7 September, an order said.

Officials said four more bodies of those hit by the landslide near BBMB colony of Sundernagar area on Tuesday evening were recovered, taking the death toll to seven. Sundernagar sub-divisional magistrate Amar Negi said of the seven, five were part of the same family.

The SDM added that three of the deceased have been identified as Surinder Kaur, her son Gurpreet Singh and Prakash Sharma, while details of others are awaited.

In a similar incident in the Akhada Bazaar area of Kullu district, two people, including an NDRF jawan, are feared dead as two houses collapsed following a landslide late on Tuesday night, officials said. They have been identified as NDRF jawan Narinder (37) and a Kashmiri youth Waqar Ahmad (24). Rescue operations are underway, they added.

Reports continued to pour in of more devastation as five trucks parked on the roadside at Wangtu in Kinnaur district were damaged by falling rocks, while residents of 15 houses were evacuated in Kunduni village in Jogindernagar in Mandi after a landslip posed a threat.

Residents had a narrow escape when debris from a mountain fell on a house in Chauhra village in Kandaghat in Solan district on Tuesday night, officials said.

The back wall of a primary school in the Jamli area in Bilaspur district has collapsed and water entered the building, following heavy rainfall in the past four days, officials said.

Education secretary Rakesh Kanwar said teachers and administrative staff will also be exempted from attending colleges and schools, However, heads of institutions shall ensure that classes are conducted online whenever possible, he said.

Owing to prevalent inclement weather conditions, there is high possibility of recurrence of such incidents at several locations in the entire state and therefore it has been decided to close schools to ensure security and safety of students and staff, the order added.

The heads of educational institutions should remain vigilant during this period to ensure safety and security of the infrastructure and movable assets and ensure safekeep of the movable assets and school record, the order further said.

Road travel was disrupted in the state with 1,162 roads blocked. While 289 were blocked in Mandi, 234 in Shimla, 205 in Kullu and 137 in Sirmaur district, among others, while details from Chamba district are awaited, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said.

National Highway 3 (Mandi-Dharampur Road), National Highway 5 (Old Hindustan-Tibet Road), NH 21 (Chandigarh-Manali Road), NH 205 (Kharar to Swarghat), NH 305 (Aut-Sainj Road), NH 505 (Khab to Gramphu) and NH 707 (Hatkoti to Poanta) were blocked, the centre added.

Trains plying on the Shimla-Kalka track have been cancelled until Friday, 5 September following landslips on the track.

Moderate to heavy rains continued to lash parts of Himachal with Naina Devi receiving 136 mm of rain since Tuesday night, Jot 100.6 mm, Pachhad 77 mm, Kothi 68.4 mm, Chamba 66 mm, Bilaspur 60.4 mm, Rohru 60 mm, Manali 57 mm, Palampur 52.6 mm, Kasauli 49.5 mm, Kandaghat and Dadahu 48 mm each, Sarahan 44.5 mm, Solan 43.6 mm, Kahu 43.5 and Malraon 40 mm.

The local met office has issued an orange warning for heavy to very heavy rains in isolated areas of the state on Wednesday. Since the onset of the monsoon in Himachal on 20 June, the state has witnessed 95 flash floods, 45 cloudbursts and 122 major landslide incidents.

At least 341 people have died in rain-related incidents and road accidents, with 41 missing since the monsoon began.

The state has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 3,525 crore this monsoon so far, according to official data.