Twenty-two people, including eight members of a family, werekilled and six feared dead in incidents of landslide and flash flood triggeredby heavy rainfall in Himachal Pradesh since Friday, officials said.
Ten people were injured, state Disaster Management Department Director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta said on Saturday.
The maximum damage has been reported from Mandi,Kangra and Chamba districts, he said, adding that so far 36 weather-relatedincidents have been reported from the state.
As many as 743 roads, including theManali-Chandigarh national highway at Mandi and the Shimla-Chandigarh?highwayat Shoghi have been blocked for traffic, he added.
In Mandi alone, 13 persons died and five wentmissing in flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall, DeputyCommissioner Arindam Chaudhary told PTI.
Bodies of eight members of a family were retrievedfrom the debris of their house after a four-hour-long search operation by theNational Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and police at Kashan village in Gohardevelopment block, he added. The house collapsed in a landslide.
The body of a girl was recovered at some distanceaway from her house after a flash flood in Baghi nullah on theMandi-Katola-Prashar road, the DC said, adding that five members of her familyare feared washed away.
Several families left their homes located between Baghi and Old Katola areas after a cloud burst and took shelter at safer places, he added.
Two people were killed and two others injured asboulders hit their car in Shimla¡¯s Theog, Disaster Management Director SudeshKumar Mokhta said.
Three people were killed after their housecollapsed following a landslide at Banet village in Chowari of Chamba around4.30 am, Mokhta told PTI.
In Kangra, a ¡®kutcha¡¯ house collapsed, killing a nine-year-old child, officials said.
Meanwhile, trains on the Jogindernagar-Pathankotroute have been suspended as Chakki Bridge in Himachal Pradesh¡¯s Kangradistrict collapsed due to heavy rainfall on Saturday, officials said.
The Railway authorities had declared the bridgeunsafe and the train service on the narrow-gauge track from Pathankot (Punjab)to Jogindernagar (Himachal Pradesh) has been suspended, they added. InHamirpur, 30 people who were stranded following a flash flood evacuated safely,they said.
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and BJP president JPNadda expressed grief over the deaths and said the administration is carryingout rescue operations on a war footing in affected districts.
¡°As many as 407 roads will be restored today and268 will be cleared by tomorrow,¡± Thakur said.
Meanwhile, water and power supply have been hit inseveral parts of the state.
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