Heavy rains trigger landslides in north Sikkim's Dzongu; road connectivity hit, houses and school buildings damaged

Gangtok: Continuous downpour on Friday triggered fresh landslides in north Sikkim, already battered by rains and widespread landslips since last Sunday. There was no information on loss of human lives due to the landslides, a district official said. [caption id=“attachment_1659519” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. AFP[/caption] The fresh landslides were reported at Passingdong village in Dzongu. The residents of the houses that are in danger have been shifted to safer locations, the official said, adding that incessant rain in north Sikkim since last Sunday is triggering landslides in different areas at regular intervals. Fifty houses, school buildings and roads were damaged in the landslides reported from Dzongu, Mangan, Lachen and Mangshilla in north district of the land-locked state since last Sunday, the official said. The district remains isolated from the rest of the country due to snapping of road connectivity, the official said. The road between Mangan and Chungthang has been affected by many landslides and it is likely to take about a month to open the road for vehicular traffic, the official said. The district administration has set up a control room and disaster help lines to help the people in distress. State forest minister and local MLA TW Lepcha and Deputy Speaker of Sikkim Assembly Sonam Gyatso Lepcha on Saturday visited the affected areas in and around Mangan with the district collector, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) and other officials. The team visited the Rafong Khola slide where a temporary log bridge has been built by the forest department. The landslides at Rafong Khola are still active due to which there is a major problem in the movement of people. The team visited the Lanthey Khola slide, where the road has been completely damaged by landslide. The streams are flowing in full spate, bringing down boulders and causing landsldes, which has cut off the road network. A meeting was held to review the situation in the district during which District Collector Karma R Bonpo briefed the team about the extent of damages reported from across north district. He said teams headed by sub-divisional magistrates will be providing relief to the people. The restoration of the road network is being carried out by the Border Roads Organisation, Road & Bridges Department and the PMGSY Department. Electricity connection to Dzongu is being restored by the Energy and Power Department and the water supply to Mangan town is being restored by the PHE Department. The revenue department is carrying out the assessment of the damages to various public properties in the district. A team of armed police has been placed on a standby for search and rescue. The landslides across the district have damaged about 50 houses, some of which have been damaged severely. Many schools have been damaged due to which the administration has ordered the closure of these schools.